School Board schedules special meeting on Lab School’s future
DELMAR –On Monday, March 4, two days before the March 6 school board meeting and after press time our most recent print issue of The Spotlight, Bethlehem Central School District Superintendent Jody Monroe e-mailed high school Lab School families informing them that 9th grade students “can continue as enrolled students in Lab School if they so choose.” However, there are no plans to enroll incoming freshmen for next September.
Monroe’s reversal on the 9th grade cohort came with the caveat that continuation through graduation “cannot be guaranteed.” Monroe advised, “projected enrollment, attrition, student progress, and program feedback will be evaluated twice a year to determine the viability of the cohort learning model for this class.”
As previously reported by Spotlight, Monroe planned to return 9th grade Lab School students to the regular high school next September. Last week, the School Board established a committee, which will now include parents, to review Lab School. Monroe also sought “pausing” Lab School while the committee operates, but received pushback from the board.
At its March 6 meeting, the board voted unanimously to schedule a special board meeting for Monday, March 11 at 7 p.m. to discuss the future of Lab School.
Several Lab School parents spoke during the meeting’s public comment section, urging the Board to countermand the Superintendent’s decision to forgo a September 2024 freshman class. Lisa LeCours noted the importance of “keeping the momentum of the Lab School going” and saw no negatives in recruiting 8th graders to enroll. Katie Quinn opined that that decision means Lab School is being “designed to fail.”
In an interview, Lab School parent Rob Cole said the decision on a freshman class “is not the right decision for Lab School.” He was unhappy that Superintendent Monroe seemingly unilaterally made that decision. “This needs to be voted on by the board,” Cole said.
