Consolidated Schools Can Produce Benefits
School consolidation, when two or more schools are combined for educational or economic benefits, is a controversial issue that has been debated in the United States for years. Studies show that consolidation is evenly split among supporters and those who are opposed to the idea, but research rarely examines how design improvements can help facilitate consolidation.
According to Erik Nelson, author on “Educational Management,” a consolidated school “offers an expanded curriculum and a more prominent identity in the community while reducing costs through economy of scale.”
Bigger = Better?
School consolidation can offer educational and financial advantages. It often enables the consolidated schools to share courses and facilities, which results in a more varied curriculum because fewer classes are dropped due to low enrollment. Expenditures for capital improvements and basic maintenance are reduced because there is no need to upgrade or maintain duplicate facilities.
Economy of scale weighs heavily in favor of consolidation. Operating costs at traditional schools increase when the number of students served is less than the maximum allowed by the design of the building.
Consolidation between two schools not only reduces expenditures by one facility, the cost per student drops while maintaining the same quality of education. In addition, because consolidation often combines classes and increases their size, fewer teachers need to be employed. Consolidated schools also realize a financial benefit due to fewer administrative staff.
Consolidation of schools can also produce psychological benefits. When combined, schools often gain a confidence and an identity in the community they did not previously possess. In addition, sports programs and extracurricular activities thrive in consolidated schools because of combined funding.
However, some educators stress the benefits of small schools and question the effectiveness of school consolidation. Small schools are able to perform functions that are impossible in larger schools and they usually provide closer relationships between faculty and administration, a smaller teacher-student ratio and greater potential for individualized instruction.
Some say higher teacher-student ratios lead to greater tension between the students and teachers due to less personal contact. This breeds frustration, alienation and low morale among students and school staff.
Effort and money are devoted to discipline problems in larger schools, countering economic benefits. In addition, consolidation often results in additional costs for capital expenses due to the need for larger facilities, and maintenance of these buildings can be more expensive.
Success Breeds Success
Highline School District was facing tight budgets and shrinking enrollment, which lead to the decision to combine Valley View Elementary and Bow Lake Elementary in SeaTac, Wash.
Each school represented a unique student body. Bow Lake is home to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Program and a language-learning center that represents 66 languages. Valley View serves students in the Highly Capable Program.
The resulting design of the new Bow Lake Elementary School blends the differences of students into a melting pot of educational opportunity.
Diana Garcia, principal of Bow Lake, says the consolidation process has been a rebirthing.
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| Each teaching area has a unique identity, creating personalized small learning communities within the larger setting. |
The new two-story, 75,000-square-foot school seamlessly mixes students in five learning communities. Constant school and district involvement during the design phase helped eradicate potential turf wars among the schools.
“There was never any us versus them because the staff had a large voice in the design and the end result is exactly what we wanted,” Garcia says.
With the small learning communities, students receive individual attention, while gaining a broad educational experience. These communities have helped to retain the feel of a smaller school.
The learning communities are created with six classrooms clustered around a shared activity room that promotes collaboration and hands-on learning. The layout creates independent team areas, but also provides clearly defined circulation paths for staff and students.
The consolidation also benefits the community. A community room for the city, which is used as a community childcare center before and after school hours, was included in the design. This synergy between the school district and the city creates additional funding for the program, serving both public agencies at once.
Through creative school design, districts and communities can overcome the negatives of school consolidation. Creative design can bring schools the benefits of a small, personalized education while retaining the economic advantages of consolidation.
Varied spaces can be created through collaborative space, individualized learning communities, hands-on spaces, site integration or traditional classrooms. School consolidation can be a win-win situation for everyone involved, from leveraging limited tax dollars to creating high educational standards.
Thomas Bates, FAIA, is managing principal at BLRB Architects in Tacoma, Wash., with more than 25 years of experience.