Freetown Elementary School, Massachusetts
Encyclopedia
Freetown Elementary School opened in 1950 and serves grammar school student
s from the town of Freetown, Massachusetts
. It educates around 546 students in grades PK-4 as part of the Freetown & Lakeville Public Schools
.
As of the 2005-06 school year, the school had an enrollment of 542 students and 34.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE
basis), for a student-teacher ratio of 15.6. 96% of students are Caucasian
.
The school has a chorus that performs in an annual Winter Holiday Concert in December. Each November, the school has an annual Food Drive that helps needy families in Freetown.
Lack of parking spaces remains a problem at the school, especially for public meetings in the evening and during preschool drop-off and pick-up times. One of the school's parking lots is on Memorial Drive; a smaller one is on Bullock Road. Some parents have parked off of school property and crossed busy streets with their children when dropping them off or picking them up.
s as their only form of plumbing
. As part of the town's post-war
planning, it was decided to construct a centrally-located elementary school for all the town's students.
Israel T. Almy of Boston was selected as the architect
, and the school was constructed from 1949 - 1950. The eight-room grammar school replaced all the town's schoolhouses when opened in 1950. It housed grades 1-8 until 1972, when grades 5-8 moved to the new George R. Austin Middle School (now the Freetown-Lakeville Middle School
). Kindergarten
and preschool programs have also been added, bringing the current grade span to PreK-4.
The building has been extensively remodelled and expanded, most recently in 1999-2002, and prior to that in at least 1965. A new gym
nasium was constructed in 1965, and replaced in 2002, leaving the original gymnasium/auditorium to function solely as an auditorium
. As a result of this space, the school is now home to Freetown's town meeting
s.
The $9.5 million expansion in 2002 added 25000 square feet (2,322.6 m²) of space to the building, bringing it to a total of 105000 square feet (9,754.8 m²). The new gymnasium has its own bathrooms and office space (with a private shower) for the school gym teacher, who previously operated out of a closet. The school library space was extended by 10 feet (3 m) and a skylight was installed in it. New windows and hallway tiles were installed, along with 32 inches (812.8 mm) television monitors hung from the ceilings of every classroom. Storage areas were converted into new, large music and art classrooms. A computer lab with 32 Imac computers was added to the library, and a science computer lab with 16 computers was also added as part of the renovations. The project was designed and built by architects Strekelodsky & Hoit of Hingham and AMG Construction of Stoughton.
On 30 November 2009, the school's 2002 gymnasium was named after Tyler Traham.
testing for the area. The flood warning ended at 11:45 PM that night. The next day, though, a call was made to parents townwide, that school would be closed the rest of the week due to road damage due to floods. MCAS testing was depleted to 2 sessions and started on April 6 and April 7 ended the test.
The annual Parent Teacher Organization fund-raiser pays for various programs, including transportation for field trips, special in-class programs and visiting performing-arts groups. In the 2006-2007 school year, the PTO donated $4,500 for a new school driveway. In October 2007, Principal Robert Frizelle offered to change his hair color every day for a week if the fund-raiser gathered in more than $18,000 (fund-raising had been down, with only $13,000 gathered the year before). Parents and children sold magazines, small gifts and wrapping paper in the 2007 campaign, and they met the fund-raising goal. Frizelle began his hair coloring with red, in honor of the Boston Red Sox
. (He used spray-on colors sold for Halloween.)
Budget constraints forced the closing of the school library in the 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 achool years. The library was reopened in the fall of 2007.
The school was forced to repay $42,000 in November 2007 to the Town, with a further $5,000 in dispute.
Student
A student is a learner, or someone who attends an educational institution. In some nations, the English term is reserved for those who attend university, while a schoolchild under the age of eighteen is called a pupil in English...
s from the town of Freetown, Massachusetts
Freetown, Massachusetts
Freetown is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 8,870 at the 2010 census.Freetown is one of the oldest communities in the United States, having been settled by the Pilgrims and their descendants in the latter half of the 17th century. The town once included...
. It educates around 546 students in grades PK-4 as part of the Freetown & Lakeville Public Schools
Freetown & Lakeville Public Schools
Freetown & Lakeville Public Schools, formally the Freetown-Lakeville Regional School District and Superintendency Union #34 is a school district serving the towns of Freetown and Lakeville in Massachusetts, United States.- Local vs...
.
As of the 2005-06 school year, the school had an enrollment of 542 students and 34.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE
Full-time equivalent
Full-time equivalent , is a unit to measure employed persons or students in a way that makes them comparable although they may work or study a different number of hours per week. FTE is often used to measure a worker's involvement in a project, or to track cost reductions in an organization...
basis), for a student-teacher ratio of 15.6. 96% of students are Caucasian
Caucasian race
The term Caucasian race has been used to denote the general physical type of some or all of the populations of Europe, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, Western Asia , Central Asia and South Asia...
.
The school has a chorus that performs in an annual Winter Holiday Concert in December. Each November, the school has an annual Food Drive that helps needy families in Freetown.
Academics
In the statewide Spring 2007 MCAS test for Grade 3 a total of 53 percent of students achieved proficiency in reading (an increase of 3 percent over the year before), with another 49 percent in need of improvement. A total of 56 percent were proficient in mathematics (up 14 percent from the year before) and 44 were found in need of improvement. For Grade 4, the test showed 44 percent were proficient in "English language arts" and 56 percent were in need of improvement mathematics results showed 40 percent proficient, 60 percent in need of improvement.Facilities
The Ted Just Memorial Field, a baseball field, was constructed on the front yard facing Bullock Road in memory of a fourth grade teacher who died in 1993.Lack of parking spaces remains a problem at the school, especially for public meetings in the evening and during preschool drop-off and pick-up times. One of the school's parking lots is on Memorial Drive; a smaller one is on Bullock Road. Some parents have parked off of school property and crossed busy streets with their children when dropping them off or picking them up.
History
The town operated between eight and one dozen small school districts throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, and well into the 20th century. These schoolhouses were typically of one or two rooms, were heated by woodstoves, and featured outhouseOuthouse
An outhouse is a small structure separate from a main building which often contained a simple toilet and may possibly also be used for housing animals and storage.- Terminology :...
s as their only form of plumbing
Plumbing
Plumbing is the system of pipes and drains installed in a building for the distribution of potable drinking water and the removal of waterborne wastes, and the skilled trade of working with pipes, tubing and plumbing fixtures in such systems. A plumber is someone who installs or repairs piping...
. As part of the town's post-war
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
planning, it was decided to construct a centrally-located elementary school for all the town's students.
Israel T. Almy of Boston was selected as the architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
, and the school was constructed from 1949 - 1950. The eight-room grammar school replaced all the town's schoolhouses when opened in 1950. It housed grades 1-8 until 1972, when grades 5-8 moved to the new George R. Austin Middle School (now the Freetown-Lakeville Middle School
Freetown-Lakeville Middle School
Freetown-Lakeville Middle School opened on September 15, 2002, then serving students in grades 5 to 8 from the towns of Freetown and Lakeville, Massachusetts. Since September 2004, it has served grades 6 to 8. Grade 5 students currently attend the George R...
). Kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
and preschool programs have also been added, bringing the current grade span to PreK-4.
The building has been extensively remodelled and expanded, most recently in 1999-2002, and prior to that in at least 1965. A new gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
nasium was constructed in 1965, and replaced in 2002, leaving the original gymnasium/auditorium to function solely as an auditorium
Auditorium
An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances at venues such as theatres. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens.- Etymology :...
. As a result of this space, the school is now home to Freetown's town meeting
Town meeting
A town meeting is a form of direct democratic rule, used primarily in portions of the United States since the 17th century, in which most or all the members of a community come together to legislate policy and budgets for local government....
s.
The $9.5 million expansion in 2002 added 25000 square feet (2,322.6 m²) of space to the building, bringing it to a total of 105000 square feet (9,754.8 m²). The new gymnasium has its own bathrooms and office space (with a private shower) for the school gym teacher, who previously operated out of a closet. The school library space was extended by 10 feet (3 m) and a skylight was installed in it. New windows and hallway tiles were installed, along with 32 inches (812.8 mm) television monitors hung from the ceilings of every classroom. Storage areas were converted into new, large music and art classrooms. A computer lab with 32 Imac computers was added to the library, and a science computer lab with 16 computers was also added as part of the renovations. The project was designed and built by architects Strekelodsky & Hoit of Hingham and AMG Construction of Stoughton.
On 30 November 2009, the school's 2002 gymnasium was named after Tyler Traham.
2010 flood
One of the school's biggest incidents were on March 30, 2010. On this day, a flood emergency was issued. The entire district became in a state of emergency due to a flood of more than 2". This incident forced dismissal to be pushed back to 2:20 PM instead of the normal 3:15 PM. The busses became a little late than usual due to this incident. The school was used for shelter for kids who were not allowed to go off the bus due to the floods. The shelter is used also for homeless. The flood cancelled the March 31, 2010 school day and delayed MCASMassachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System
The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System, commonly shortened to MCAS , is the Commonwealth's statewide standards-based assessment program developed in 1993, in response to the Massachusetts Education Reform Act of the same year...
testing for the area. The flood warning ended at 11:45 PM that night. The next day, though, a call was made to parents townwide, that school would be closed the rest of the week due to road damage due to floods. MCAS testing was depleted to 2 sessions and started on April 6 and April 7 ended the test.
Budget-related actions
Tight financing for the school has sometimes caused problems, led to disputes and even changed the color of the principal's hair.The annual Parent Teacher Organization fund-raiser pays for various programs, including transportation for field trips, special in-class programs and visiting performing-arts groups. In the 2006-2007 school year, the PTO donated $4,500 for a new school driveway. In October 2007, Principal Robert Frizelle offered to change his hair color every day for a week if the fund-raiser gathered in more than $18,000 (fund-raising had been down, with only $13,000 gathered the year before). Parents and children sold magazines, small gifts and wrapping paper in the 2007 campaign, and they met the fund-raising goal. Frizelle began his hair coloring with red, in honor of the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
. (He used spray-on colors sold for Halloween.)
Budget constraints forced the closing of the school library in the 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 achool years. The library was reopened in the fall of 2007.
The school was forced to repay $42,000 in November 2007 to the Town, with a further $5,000 in dispute.