Keep small schools open
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I read with dismay the Times-Mirror's article of April 30 ["Parents fighting for small western schools"] on Dr. Hatrick's recommendation to close Middleburg and Aldie elementary schools. Sadly, over the course of the past 20 years, parents in rural Loudoun have had to mobilize to fend off repeated attempts by his administration to close our small neighborhood schools. In addition to Middleburg and Aldie, Lincoln, Waterford, Hamilton and Hillsboro have all been threatened with closure in recent years.
With a shortage of facilities to accommodate a growing student population, a crisis-level shortage of teachers, and increasing pressure to maintain its academic standing, it is puzzling that the administration would devote time to planning the closure of any functioning and viable school and eliminate much needed seats for already overcrowded students.
When pressed on their reasoning, the administration cites economics, claiming that the small, older schools are more expensive to operate than their large new counterparts. Careful review and study of the school administration's own planning documents reveal these economic claims to be false. All of the county's older schools require no financing of debt but are owned outrightly, basic maintenance costs are little more than the newer buildings, and when enrolled to capacity and staffed reasonably, those older schools are cost efficient.
In a far-sighted legislative move designed to address many concerns at once, the School Board approved in 2004 to allow special exception for students in any overcrowded county school to opt to attend Middleburg Elementary. This insightful policy, at no additional cost to taxpayers, has not only afforded students in more populous areas the benefits of small class sizes, but has maintained Middleburg's enrollment, thus keeping it cost-efficient.
Even apart from these measures, the opening next year of Dr. Sheila Johnston's much acclaimed Salamander Inn will certainly add to Middleburg's enrollment as her business manager confirms that more than 60 single family homes will be included in the development.
In fact, behind the smokescreen of "economic concerns," driving the push to abandon older schools is Dr Hatrick's stated personal belief that children learn better in larger schools with state-of-the-art facilities and the large capacity that allows two or more classrooms per grade. This view is opposed by many in the academic community and recent studies, particularly one conducted in 2006 by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, finds exactly the opposite to hold true.
A recent 30-year study in the Journal of Education states that children in small localized elementary schools with smaller class sizes and more personal connection with teachers go on to perform significantly better in both high school and college.
In light of these facts, perhaps Dr. Hatrick will reconsider his opinion on small schools and refocus his attention on quality education for all our county's children.
Carla Passarello
Middleburg
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