JCJ Architecture/Pickard Chilton
A rendering of the future Strong School.
The construction of the new Strong School could start in late February or early March, alders learned Thursday night as they voted to approve a lease with Southern Connecticut State University.
Markeshia Ricks Photo
Clark with magnet resource teacher Susan Bonanno before the alders Thursday night at City Hall.
The Community Development Committee of the Board of Alders voted to give the OK Thursday night to an annual $1 lease between the New Haven Board of Education and SCSU for space to build the pre‑K to 4 lab school on Southern’s campus at 69 Farnham Ave.
The theme of the school: Grooming future teachers for New Haven public schools, with the help of Southern’s education school.
Now the lease goes before the full Board of Alders for final approval.
Alders of the committee got to hear a bit about how the new school will be different from the current Strong 21st Century Communications Magnet School that will be in operation for at least another two years at 130 Orchard St. It will take about two years to build the school, according to schools Chief Operating Officer Will Clark.
Last year, after a contentious budget battle, alders agreed to build the new school with the help of about $34.2 million from the state. The city has to kick in about $10.8 million. The new school is expected to be about 62,000 square feet, according to Construction Manager Bob Lynn. The number of students the school can accommodate will grow from the 350 now served to the 490s.
Wingate pressed for local jobs, local hiring.
Beaver Hills Alder Brian Wingate pressed Clark and Lynn about hiring locally. Will the construction company be working with local minority contractors? Will they be tapping into New Haven Works to hire New Haven residents for local jobs? The men said yes to both questions.
Wingate was glad to hear that.
“With this board, it is always local, local, local,” he said. “New Haven, New Haven, New Haven.”
Clark also reminded alders that the collaboration between the school system and SCSU will be good for the recruitment of minority teachers and further cement the relationship between the two partners. SCSU is a university of choice for many New Haven school students when they graduate.
Hegedus
Stephen Hegedus, the dean of the SCSU School of Education, said he believed that the partnership would “do some amazing things” and that the “school is going to be a model across the nation.”
“Our faculty and students are so excited,” he said.
Current Strong School Principal Susan DeNicola assured Alder Delphine Clyburn that the makeup of the magnet school likely won’t be changing when students move into the new school. While the school does receive some students from surrounding towns because of open choice, the majority of students are from New Haven. The school is about 60 percent African-American and 33 percent Latino, she said.
Clark said the dream scenario is for the students to move into the school at the beginning of the 2020 school year.