CARIBOU, Maine — After receiving feedback from parents and teachers regarding a decision to move Hilltop’s preK-2 students to Teague Park, and Teague Park’s fourth- and fifth-graders to Caribou Middle School, RSU 39 board members held off on making any final decisions, providing those concerned with time to devise a plan that would better suit students.
A task group was soon formed, and many of its members spoke during an April 5 meeting regarding the importance of keeping grades three and five together, and also with sending fifth-graders to Caribou Middle School. However, the board ultimately voted to move forward with their original plan of moving preK-2 to Teague Park, keeping Teague’s third-graders in the building, and then moving their fourth- and fifth-graders to the middle school.
This student configuration is only temporary, as Caribou’s preK-8 students will eventually inhabit one facility, to be built where Teague Park School currently stands, in 2020.
Many of the concerned teachers and parents felt that, even though this is a temporary change, it could have a significant impact on children’s education. Michelle Hersey, one of several speakers, suggested that grades three through eight attend Caribou Middle School, as Teague Park does not have adequate space for preK to third-graders.
“In order to accommodate enough classes for preK to third grade,” Hersey said, “two rooms would have to be converted into three in two areas, resulting in three core classrooms that are significantly reduced in size, resulting in what would likely be the smallest core classrooms in our district.”
Hersey added that this temporary configuration would not be cheap.
“Regardless of the available labor resources, these renovations will be costly,” Hersey said, “due to the reconfiguration of heating, ventilation, lights, electricity and doorways. There will be no dedicated space for library, music, or art at Teague Park. Parents and educators agree that little kids in a little room with little movement is a big problem for a productive learning environment. Even as a temporary solution, this will affect some children much longer than just three years.”
Steve Perreault, who has taught at Caribou Middle School since 1979, argued that the building is not equipped to hold grades three through eight.
“I’ve seen all the changes since starting here,” Perreault said. “We were a grade seven to nine school, we had five through eight, we now teach six through eight, and who knows what the future will bring. We do not feel that we have adequate space to house six grade levels in our school and maintain the quality education we’re accustomed to.”
He added that traffic and the programming could be maintained if only grades four and five were brought into the building.
Hilltop Elementary is on track to be sold and repurposed as a senior living center as part of a larger plan to build a new prek-8 facility in Caribou. In addition, the Caribou Learning Center is scheduled to be demolished later this year. Teague Park and the Middle School will remain in Caribou until roughly 2020, at which point they will be demolished as students enter the brand new facility.
