The main report’s cover page.
Creating a regional school district in Ansonia and Derby could save millions per year on operating costs — but residents would also have to borrow millions to do things like expand existing buildings.
The creation of a regional school district would not improve test scores — but students in a regionalized high school would have more courses from which to choose.
The creation of a regional school district could make it tougher for kids to get on varsity sports teams because the competition would be greater — but a combined district between Ansonia and Derby would allow for more teams at the freshman and junior varsity levels.
Those are just some of the tidbits from a 173-page report unveiled to the public Monday (but given to committee members Friday) during a meeting of the “Temporary Regional School Study Committee,” a 10-person appointed committee with members from Ansonia and Derby.
Click here to download the report.
The Valley Indy also uploaded the report here.
The committee, formed in 2018, is exploring whether to put a regionalization plan out to voters in both communities.
The committee is scheduled to meet again Dec. 9 to go over the regionalization report, along with a 11-page report detailing “shared service” options the communities may want to consider. Shared services options do not require voter approval. (Click here to read the “shared services” report.
The legislative bodies in each city are also being asked to extend the life of the committee, which is set to expire in the spring.
The reports were prepared by District Management Group, Milone & MacBroom, and Silver/Petrucelli & Associates, consultants hired by the communities using grant money.
The 173-page “Task 1” analysis recommends the committee explore five options:
1. Leaving things as is, referred to as “status quo.”
2. Regionalize pre‑K through 12, with four elementary schools (requires voter approval in both cities)
3. Regionalize pre‑K through 12, with three elementary schools (requires voter approval in both cities
(the options above are in the “Task 1,” 173-page report)
4. Leave the districts as separate, initiate shared services for “some savings” (no public vote required)
5. Leave the districts separate, initiate some shared services, and share a central office to save more money (no public vote required)
(options four and five are outlined in the “Task 2,” 11-page report)
1. STATUS QUO
The report’s authors note that maintaining the status quo could cost taxpayers about $62 million in the long run.
That’s because the consultants ran a list of repairs that need to be made at existing facilities (capital expenses). However, there was some push back from committee members regarding that $62 million price tag Monday.
Basically, members said, that $62 million represents a complete “to do” list of building improvements. Members, such as co-chairman Jim Gidea of Derby, wanted a more concise list of building improvements.
2. Regionalize pre‑K through 12, with four elementary schools (requires voter approval in both cities)
This scenario:
- Keeps all Ansonia (Mead, Prendergast) and Derby (Bradley, Irving) elementary schools open (with renovations to all).
- Closes the aging Ansonia Middle School (with intent to sell the property)
- Add space to Derby Middle School to absorb Ansonia students
- Closes the aging Derby High School (not a likely candidate to sell, since it shares a campus with Derby Middle School)
- Add space to Ansonia High School to absorb Derby students
- Close Derby’s central office
- Expand Ansonia’s central office into a regional office
- Total price tag for capital improvements (meaning building work): $32,241,529
- Total annual operating budget savings: $2.49 million
3. Regionalize pre‑K through 12, with three elementary schools (requires voter approval in both cities)
This scenario:
- Closes Derby’s Irving School, calls for renovations to Bradley, keeps Ansonia elementary schools (Mead and Prendergast) open.
- Does everything else listed in option 2 above (close Ansonia Middle School, expand Derby Middle, close Derby High, expand Ansonia High)
- Price tag for capital improvements: $24,993,312
- Savings to the operating budget: $2.93 million annually
“The majority of operational savings come from the assumptions that a regional district would merge central offices and that all teachers would shift to Derby’s pay scale and health/dental,” the report states.
“All put together, a regional district (pre‑K through 12) with three elementary schools could have up to a $10,000,000 surplus by 2024 – 2025,” the consultants told the committee Monday.
Regarding the building expansion and renovation costs listed above, committee members wanted more concise information. They wanted to know what work would be required to be done — and the price tag — in each regionalization scenario.
The report looks at but does NOT recommend the following options:
Regionalizing only grades nine through 12: It’s reviewed in the report, but is not recommended because it doesn’t save as much money as the other options, and would require the addition of a regional board, along with the two existing school boards, to govern.
Just regionalizing grades six through 12: It’s also reviewed in the report but not recommended for the same reasons.
Options 4 and 5
The committee Monday also received an 11-page “Analysis of Savings from Shared Services,” which the consultants referred to as “Task 2” Monday.
“Shared services,” according to the report, “can refer to any function across the two districts, and can lead to both financial savings and expanded opportunities for students.”
The potential savings by sharing services mostly come from combining central office staff ($720,000 combined), according to the report. It also points out Ansonia and Derby could also save some money ($190,000) by teaming in special education areas. Another $140,000 could be squeezed by taking advantage of the “economies of scale” larger school districts enjoy.
Derby and Ansonia have tried “shared services” before (food services, technology) — with “mixed results” according to info from focus groups who met with the consultants.
Other highlights from the report:
- Regionalization, in any scenario, would not save on transportation costs (that is, the cost of getting kids to and from school, not including sporting events), according to the report.
- In each scenario, Derby would save more money in operating costs because they spend more per pupil than Ansonia
- Up to $700,000 in utility costs could be saved (in the three elementary school scenario).
- If a new school district is created, a new contract would have to be worked out with teachers
- Recent enrollment trends show that Ansonia’s enrollment is expected to increase 3 percent over the next five years; Derby’s is expected to decrease 13 percent
- The district’s combined expenditures have grown 2 percent annually over the past five years, reaching $66.6 million last year
- There are a number of configurations suggested for a new, regional board of education. See image below.
- – — – — – — – — – THE 173-PAGE REPORT IS EMBEDDED BELOW – — — – — – — – — – — – -
Ansonia-Derby TASK 1 REPORT by The Valley Indy on Scribd
