By Kristine Thomas
This time, they are determined to effectively and clearly communicate why it is time to close Eugene Field Elementary School.
Eugene Field parents are working to raise awareness of the problems of the 93-year-old building. They have sent letters to the Silver Falls School Board members, spoken at the April 14 board meeting and created a Facebook page called “A Promise for Eugene Field.” Since it was started in mid-April the Facebook page has gained 207 likes.
Eugene Field parents invite community members who have questions about the building and who want to learn why parents support closing the school to visit their table by The Gathering Spot on First Street in downtown Silverton Friday, May 2, 6 to 9 p.m. The parents want to share “what it looks like behind the curtain” and gather names for a petition to give to the Silver Falls School District board, showing those who support closing the school.
Principal Jennifer Hannan said the mood is vastly different from a year ago when a $36.9 million school bond measure was defeated 58 to 42 percent.
That bond would have paid to convert the Schlador Street campus into a middle school; covered maintenance and facility upgrades at the district’s elementary schools and allowed Eugene Field Elementary School to be closed.
The failure of the bond didn’t eliminate the need for a plan.
Since that time, the Eugene Field Task Force Committee spent months reviewing options. It has recommended the board close the school by the 2015-16 school year, and go to the voters in November with a new bond proposal. The board has not made a decision on the task force recommendations. Board chairman Tim Roth said at the April board meeting he hopes the board reaches a decision at its May 12 meeting.
“This time, they realize it is their fight to win,” Hannan said.
She said one question repeatedly asked is “Is it really that bad?”
“Because the staff does an excellent job of dealing with the problems and rolling with the punches, it gives the false appearance that the building functions and is usable,” she said.
Now, “our staff is comfortable saying we have reached the tipping point and they can’t continue to manage the problems with the building,” Hannan said. “The staff is 100 percent supportive of closing the building by 2015/16.”
An example of the building’s issues, Hannan said, is inadequate electricity, with only two electrical outlets per classroom and electrical cords and power strips “everywhere,” and fuses blow on a weekly basis.
“When our students were taking the OAKS test (required state testing) computers were dying,” she said.
At the April board meeting, several parents said they want the school closed now – citing a long list of concerns including children and staff respiratory problems.
Parents have compiled a seven-page list of the issues teachers, staff, students and volunteers deal with at the school, citing “instructional time is severely interrupted and impacted due to all of the issues.”
“I have seen a push from parents who want their children out of the building immediately,” Hannan said. “They do not feel the building is safe and they don’t feel their children should be in it.”
Parents who have spoken with Hannan also have shared they favor building a new school on the Robert Frost property.
“Parents favor having all the K-6 families on one campus,” she said. “They also think it leaves Schlador open for a middle school down the road and doesn’t disrupt Community Roots School.”
At the board meeting in April, only Silverton resident Gene Pfeifer advocated for his proposal to remediate Eugene Field, arguing his plan would save the district money. Pfeifer was contacted by email for this story but didn’t respond.
More than 20 people shared their concerns about the building.
Hannan said the problem with Pfeifer’s plan is it doesn’t address the issues the staff and students deal with on a day-to-day basis.
One of the biggest problems with the facility is that it is on too small of a site, Hannan said, adding it is surrounded by two major highways.
She encouraged people who are questioning if it’s time to close Eugene Field to visit the building. Also, she suggested, looking to see who is supporting its closure.
Teachers’ perspectives
First-grade teacher Kathleen Hanberg has many concerns about Eugene Field School. She spends a great deal of time dealing with the building’s issues – time taken away from teaching.
“The best solution for our students would clearly be a new building,” she said.
“While my focus is on the students in my classroom, I also respect that we need to find a solution that all families in our district can get behind.”
Celeste Lopez taught at Eugene Field until she became an administrator in another district. She is worried about the safety and health concerns staff and students face.
“The fact is that the teaching and learning conditions of the current EF site are far beyond less than ideal. They are dangerous, unhealthy and unacceptable,” she wrote in an email. “Every day, we are sending our youngest learners and educators into a risky and unhealthy building.
A parent’s observations
Janae Senter has a child at Robert Frost and a second grader and kindergartener at Eugene Field.
It was not until this year she became aware of the health effects Eugene Field has had on her sons.
“My first son had constant sinus infections and a chronic cough which subsided as soon as he was out of Eugene Field. My second son is allergic to mold, so he has had symptoms for the last several years, which has caused him to be on daily medication and this year he developed a wheeze. He has never been asthmatic in his life,” she wrote in an email.
“It wasn’t until my youngest entered kindergarten this year that he almost immediately started developing symptoms. I began to question the building. He became symptomatic within a month of being in the building and developed multiple respiratory infections this year, turning into pneumonia at one point as well as a chronic cough and asthma symptoms.”
While there is no proof the building is the cause, Senter knows many parents and staff members who have stories just like her sons’.
“If we were to add up our medical bills from this winter, it would far outweigh what a bond would increase our property taxes. To me there is no monetary value on the health and well-being of our children,” she said.
Last year, she believed the bond would pass because she had faith that “our community would come together and that everyone knew the urgent need for a new school. Especially those that have been here forever.”
Now, there is a sense of urgency at the school that something needs to be done quickly – and not just due to health and safety risks, she said.
