AMHERST — As district leadership continues to prepare for the openings of both a 6th Grade Academy and a new K-5 elementary school next fall, and the closing of two school buildings, many questions remain about the educational model that will be used and the staffing that will be in place.
Even with these uncertainties, Superintendent E. Xiomara Herman is pledging that sixth-grade students, when moving to a wing of the Amherst Regional Middle School in fall 2026, will be assured a good experience.
“We are aiming for the same educational expectations for our sixth graders,” Herman said.
And with students and staff from Wildwood and Fort River schools bringing their own cultures to the new building, Herman said developing a school culture there will be critical to success.
Her comments came as more than 20 parents and caregivers asked questions of Herman, who was joined by several other school leaders, during Town Manager Paul Bockelman’s monthly Cuppa Joe, held at the Bangs Community Center last week.
The Cuppa Joe was a day after Herman participated in listening sessions, or what she termed “sit and get” information events, with fifth graders at both Wildwood and Fort River schools, responding to their concerns and comments about the launch of the 6th Grade Academy.
Some of the students, she said, wondered if they will still get to have recess — even as the middle school doesn’t have a playground — and whether they could continue in band and orchestra.
Because sixth graders won’t become part of the full middle school, which is only regionalized with Pelham, Leverett and Shutesbury for grades 7-12, Herman said she is leaning in favor of an educational model that would still have recess and movement opportunities during 900 hours of structured learning time, rather than a middle school model with 990 hours of structured learning time.
Herman said if a child has advanced skills, though, they should have the chance to join the middle school band and orchestra
No decisions have yet been made on bringing Caminantes, the dual language program for K-5 students at Fort River School, to the 6th Grade Academy, though. And even if that happens, extending to the middle school the Spanish-English program, in which half the day is spent learning in both languages, would be a decision made by the Amherst Regional School Committee.
Still, Herman said she is looking into providing sixth graders an exploratory block for world languages, which would give students exposure before more in-depth language instruction starts in seventh grade.
Herman said that she is in the midst of building a staffing plan for the 6th Grade Academy, the new 575 K-5 school and Crocker Farm School, but this is complicated by enrollment projections and collective bargaining agreements, in which longer tenured teachers have more say in where they teach.
About 17 to 20 educators have indicated they would be willing to teach at the 6th Grade Academy, more than in earlier surveys. But Herman said she won’t know until March or April the exact staffing plan.
One of the main worries from parents centered on whether sufficient investment has been made into the changes, with parent Meghan Fitzgerald calling this a “massive move,” with more to be done to make students comfortable.
“It feels like the students aren’t getting as much support as they should,” Fitzgerald said.
Another parent, Becca Watkins, said she would like to see the Amherst School Committee and Town Council working more closely together, describing the constant debates around school funding as “whiplash” for families.
Jill Brevik, a candidate for Town Council, said she has found discomfort in the community when talking to voters. “These are not small things people are concerned about,” Brevik said.
Allegra Clark, who is running for both Town Council and School Committee, noted her concerns with how some classes at Wildwood got too big last fall.
Herman said estimating class sizes and preparing for additional students isn’t easy in a public school district. “We have rolling and open enrollment,” Herman said.
While fully staffed at both Fort River and Wildwood to begin the fall, within a week the schools added almost 10 children, reaching the contingency level the schools had prepared for.
There is concern that the new school building and Crocker Farm have a functional capacity of 875 K-5 students, yet for fall 2027 the enrollment projections are 872, and the 144 sixth graders in the 6th Grade Academy next fall would grow to 170 the following year.
Marta Guervara, director of family advocacy and student well being for the schools, said the challenge in determining enrollment is typically families arriving in town are coming out of the shelter system when they arrive in Amherst.
Guevera also noted that some of the children, possibly due to the pandemic, have more needs than others.
Bockelman explained that while working hard to meet the school needs for operating budgets, and providing capital support for the buildout of the 6th Grade Academy, there may still be insufficient funding.
“Last year was difficult; this year is going to be harder,” he said.