Master facilities planning for CH-UH schools is underway

Local residents discussed community values as part of the master facilities planning session. The next community meeting will take place on Jan. 11 at Heights High.

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Approximately 100 residents participated in the first community meeting for the Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District facilities master plan on Nov. 30.

The meeting was an opportunity for the district to share its educational vision and explain the planning process to the community. It also provided residents with a means to communicate their priorities and goals.

“This is our moment,” Superintendent Doug Heuer said. “Now is the time for our well-educated, vibrant, well-intentioned community to come together and reinvent itself for a successful future.”

During the meeting, Dave Tabor, a parent in the district and a member of the school facilities committee, explained the first phase of the work. He focused on how the committee, comprising parents, teachers and school administrators, validated a report by the Ohio School Facilities Commission last year that stated the district’s facilities were outdated, inefficient, and in need of renovation or replacement.

Following Tabor’s presentation, James Seaman, the project leader from Fielding Nair International Architects, one of the three architectural firms the district contracted to work on the project, presented his firm’s initial findings. Seaman’s firm has designed schools throughout the country and around the world.

“Our team has never received this much feedback from a community meeting,” he said. “This level of engagement and feedback will be enormously helpful.”

Following the discussions, attendees offered feedback and suggested priorities to guide the master plan. Their list of priorities included aligning facilities to educational programs; balancing historic preservation with new construction; environmental sustainability; flexible learning spaces (but not open classrooms); globally-connected schools; spaces for community education; reasonable initial project cost; neighborhood-connected schools; manageable operating costs; safety and security; support for the arts; support for families and children; and support for healthful living.

Three additional community meetings are scheduled for 2012. They will be held from 6:30–8:30 p.m. on Jan. 11, Feb. 22, and Mar. 21 in the social room at Heights High.  Parents are encouraged attend and to bring their children. Childcare, food, and thousands of Legos will be available.

The master facilities team will summarize community input from the first meeting, and participants will once again have an opportunity to discuss priorities during the Jan. 11 meeting.