By Donald Gilpin

The renovation of the John Witherspoon Middle School (JW) Academic Conference Center (ACC), part of the facilities referendum passed last year, is scheduled to begin on March 1, transforming the ACC into new learning spaces for all JW students.

“This renovation will provide much-needed space for our growing student body and provide us with some state-of-the-art, flexible learning spaces that can be used for collaborative projects,” JWMS Principal Jason Burr wrote in a letter to JW families earlier in the month.

The four new flexible classrooms/learning spaces will all be on the same level and will have access to an outdoor courtyard. The construction schedule for all JW projects calls for completion by August 21, 2020, followed by final cleaning in preparation for the first day of school on September 9, 2020.

Also on the agenda are renovation of the health office suite and building a new medical room, an exam room, three resting areas, and a bathroom that will be easily accessible and in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The new health suite will provide improved facilities and more privacy for children who are ill. The health and nurse’s office will be moved to the Life Skills room in the A-Wing during construction. 

In addition, during the summer JW will be adding new, high efficiency HVAC units to 46 classrooms, as well as air-conditioning for the cafeteria and the new ACC space. 

In a February 13 presentation at JW, Princeton Public Schools Director of Facilities David Harding discussed several facets of the ongoing referendum projects at JW. He mentioned a number of steps that PPS will be taking to work with teachers, staff, and students to minimize disruptions during the construction operations.

“The district has safeguards in our agreement with the contractor to ensure that this work is done in a timely and efficient manner,” Burr wrote in his message to families. “Included in the plan is a very thorough cleanup after the work is completed.”

In the meanwhile, budget planning has been a top priority for the Board of Education (BOE) as the budgeting process for 2020-2021 moves into the final stages. At its February 11 budget workshop, the BOE presented an overview of the budget for the coming year.

Governor Phil Murphy will deliver his budget address and the state will release numbers later this month. The district plans to hold a second budget workshop with more specific information available in early March followed by a tentative budget adoption by March 17. 

School budgets are submitted to the county by March 20 for county and state review, and a public budget hearing and final budget adoption are scheduled for April 28.

PPS has scheduled a discussion of demographics for February 27 at 7 p.m. at 25 Valley Road, with a planning consultant from Milone & MacBroom leading the session and answering questions about the factors and formulas used to project enrollment growth in the schools. 

Before that date M&M will issue a revision of its presentation from last month in which it outlined the current state of school facilities and the projections for future growth. The updated information will address some of the questions raised during the initial public forum that was held on January 25

In the next phase of the planning process PPS will explore options to address both short- and long-term growth in the schools. Additional forums, workshops, informational meetings, and/or discussion groups engaging the community will be scheduled for the end of March and the end of April. M&M’s recommendations are anticipated in May with their final report to the Board and the community planned for the end of May or June.