Batavia School District 101 will join the John C. Dunham STEM School operated by three other area school districts in partnership with Aurora University.
The District 101 Board of Education decided Tuesday night to join the school in a 4-2 vote. Board member Melanie Impastato could not attend the meeting, but sent a message to the board in support of the proposal.
“A lot of other districts are interested in this program, but they can’t participate because of [their lack of] proximity,” said board member Jason Stoop. “We’re in an opportune position to take advantage of this program. We can bring this next-generation science curriculum to our schools.”
Dunham School opened in August, three years after East Aurora School District 131, West Aurora School District 129, Indian Prairie School District 204 and Oswego School District 308 all partnered with Aurora University to create it. Oswego dropped out of the partnership to pursue its own science, technology, engineering and math [STEM] enrichment program, said Batavia Superintendent Lisa Hichens.
Each member district sends 50 students and two teachers to the school, which serves grades three through eight. Both students and staff members remain part of their home districts while they’re involved with the program. Teachers agree to spend two to four years at Dunham, during which their home districts still pay their salaries and benefits.
Students, whom each district selects by lottery from qualified applicants, study all subjects required by state law, but with an integrated approach that combines math, science and communication skills in all classes, Hichens explained. They also have access to high-end laboratories dedicated to different branches of science, including earth sciences, biology, medicine and alternative energy.
All District 101 students would be eligible to sign up for summer and after-school programs at Dunham.
Tuition and busing for the 50 District 101 students chosen to join Dunham will cost about $180,000 per year, said Chief Academic Officer Brad Newkirk. The district also will have to either pay salaries and benefits for two new teachers to replace the two teachers sent to the STEM school or find ways to delegate those teachers’ duties to other staff.
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While the 50 students chosen to join Dunham next fall, and those second-graders chosen each year to start third grade there, will have what district officials describe as “amazing learning experiences,” the main benefit to joining the STEM school partnership will be gaining access to the school’s math and science curricula, Newkirk said.
“This is an opportunity to work with three other districts who’ve been immersed in next-generation science standards,” he asserted. “We can learn how to support our teachers in adopting next-generation standards. Our job is to bring that learning back and use it to benefit all Batavia students.”
While CAN DO, a support group for parents of gifted students in the district, urged officials to join the STEM school partnership, other residents have protested that sending only 50 students to the school is unfair to the 4,000-plus other elementary school students – especially because officials have announced that they will choose participants based on their perceived commitment to math and science as well as their classroom performance. Newkirk promised that the district would make the selection criteria public.
Board members Gregg Hodge and Jon Gaspar voted against joining the partnership.
“This program will take 50 students and leave behind the rest,” Gaspar stated. “I think we can benefit ourselves by keeping everything in house and seeking help from Fermilab and other area resources. I’m also afraid of keeping students from exploring other avenues they might excel in if we send them somewhere to focus on math and science.”
Denise Linke is a freelance reporter