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LAUREL – The incoming fifth graders at Laurel-Concord- Coleridge school will be staying at the elementary instead of heading to the Coleridge campus middle school.
The reassignment to fifth grade at the elementary has been studied by the LCC School Board for several months and was approved at the regular board meeting last week.
Starting with the 2024-25 school year, the middle school will be assigned to grades 6-8.
“While our current grade level configuration model has worked, we believe that having the fifth grade at the elementary will ultimately provide for more age-appropriate opportunities and experiences for students,” said Superintendent Jeremy Christiansen.
Making the case for reassignment to the elementary, Christiansen said fifth graders are typically still in the stage of transitioning from childhood to adolescence.
“They benefit from the nurturing environment and age-appropriate facilities of an elementary school, which is designed to cater to younger students’ needs,” he said with the elementary’s focus on building social and emotional skills. “They have opportunities to develop leadership skills with younger peers and participate in activities that are tailored to their interests and abilities.”
Academic interventions, enrichment opportunities, age-appropriate libraries, playground and extracurricular actives at the elementary level are specialized resources for fifth graders at the elementary, Christiansen said.
The reassignment also allows the school to more fully utilize the instructional spaces available through the new Laurel campus.
The school communicated these changes in a letter and email to families.
According to a report provided by Elementary Principal Keri Hart, an evening Q&A session about the change was offered but no parents attended. No parents reached out to schedule an alternative time to meet and no one responded to the letter or email.
“Due to not hearing directly back from parents, I went and asked parents to get feedback around the possible changes,” she said.
Hart said the feedback received was positive with parents comfortable with a one-homeroom concept and agreeing that fifth graders staying in the elementary building is developmentally appropriate.
Parents also said they felt class sizes were reasonable, she said.
Christiansen said it’s important to note some scheduling adjustments and shared staffing may be necessary with the reassignment.
Christiansen said he wanted it noted, this move does not imminently lead to a consolidation of the school campuses.
Administrators and teachers will assess the new model’s effectiveness and will provide updates to the board throughout the school year.
Elementary classrooms transitioned to their new spaces Wednesday, May 22, as construction was completed.
“There will still be some finishing work to be done but the classrooms are completed,” Christiansen said.
As construction wraps up, there remains some work needed in the elementary common spaces as well as some exterior finishing and landscaping.
The school will be planning a series of open house events and tours in the fall with a dedication at a later date.
The next regular LCC School board meeting is slated for 7 p.m., on Monday, June 10.
