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John Izzo, left, and James Gildea talk to reporters after a meeting of a committee studying possible schools regionalization in Ansonia and Derby.
DERBY — A committee of Ansonia and Derby officials on Wednesday began the work of studying whether to form the state’s first regional school district in more than 30 years.
The “temporary regional school school study committee” is made up of five people from each city and will study the issue for up to two years, though that term could be extended to four years.
Any changes to the structure of the Ansonia and Derby school systems would have to be approved by the majority of voters in both cities.
The members from Derby are Barbara DeGennaro, James Gildea, Tara Hyder, George Kurtyka, and Ronald Luneau, Jr.
The members from Ansonia are Lorie Vaccaro, Tracey DeLibero, John Izzo, Steven Adamowski, and Joseph Jaumann.
At Wednesday’s first meeting of the committee in Derby City Hall, Matthew Venhorst, a lawyer from the state Department of Education, walked the committee through the state laws governing the process.
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Matthew Venhorst, right, talks during a schools regionalization committee meeting as members Tara Hyder, George Kurtyka, and Ronald Luneau Jr. listen.
Venhorst said the state currently has 16 regional school districts. Derby Schools Superintendent Matthew Conway said the most recent one to form was in 1986.
The committee elected James Gildea, the chairman of the Derby Board of Education, and John Izzo, a member of the Ansonia Board of Education, to serve as co-chairs.
Steven Adamowski, and Ansonia resident currently serving as Norwalk’s schools superintendent, will serve as treasurer.
George Kurtyka, a member of Derby’s Board of Education, will serve as secretary.
While Ansonia and Derby schools have talked about sharing services for years — and still are — Wednesday’s meeting was the first step in a formal process under state law that could result in a combined regional school district.
A $168,500 state grant administered by the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments will pay for the study.
Both Ansonia and Derby are economically distressed communities with school systems that are considered “under-performing” by state education officials.
Regionalizing or consolidating the schools in some manner could be a way to save money and improve learning, advocates hope.
But as Venhorst noted during Wednesday’s meeting, the committee could opt to recommend steps short of full regionalization.
For example, some municipalities in the state have combined high schools, with lower grades educated separately.
State law directs the committee to report recommendations with respect to several areas, including:
- The advisability of regionalization
- Whether to combine all grade levels or just some
- Budget plans for at least five years into the future, with details on enrollment, staffing, and curricula
- A plan on facilities to be used
- How a regional Board of Education would be made up
The committee did not discuss the pros and cons specific policy recommendations at length Wednesday.
Instead, they agreed to solicit input from school board members in each town, as well as union officials, administrators, and student representatives for further discussion.
As well as the public, as Kurtyka noted. About 20 people attended Wednesday’s meeting.
“Whatever we decide, it’s on the taxpayers of both towns,” he said. “If you’re a resident of Derby or Ansonia, come out, ask all the questions you want, because we’re here to listen to what you want. So tell all your neighbors and friends.”
The committee voted to schedule meetings for July 23, Aug. 27, and Sept. 24.
Meeting locations will alternate between towns. The July 23 meeting is planned to take place at Ansonia High School.
The weeks leading up to Wednesday’s meeting have seen a controversy building in Ansonia regarding school funding, with a conflict between the school board and city hall now the subject of a lawsuit.
Last month Gildea said the environment in Ansonia was “concerning” to many Derby parents and officials with the regionalization discussion about to begin.
After Wednesday’s meeting, Gildea said he thinks the committee will be able to focus on the work at hand.
“Everyone here at the table is interested in working together and moving the ball forward,” he said. “I think we all recognize the issues that are going on next door. But having said that, that is an internal issue that they’re working through.”
