The Ann Arbor Public Schools Board of Education Meeting took place on Nov. 13. During public commentary, parents, teachers and community members spoke on concerns regarding the Thurston reconstruction, along with concerns about teachers’ healthcare.
Concerns regarding Thurston construction
The planned Thurston construction will be built on the one million dollar bond that was passed in 2019. The bond would be used to reconstruct ten different AAPS school buildings, along with other practical improvements around the schools.
In 2018, Thurston’s Facilities Conditions Assessment scored Thurston as “poor,” the lowest ranking out of its four categories.
While Thurston Elementary currently houses around 500 elementary school students, the building is simply not large enough, causing Thurston to face challenges with overcrowding.
While community members agree that construction is necessary, the proposed plan has raised many concerns amongst the Thurston community. The plan will begin in 2025 and will start with the new Thurston building being built, which will take around 2-3 years, then deconstructing the old Thurston building.
While some community members have expressed support for the plan, a large amount of community members have many concerns regarding the plan.
Parents and community are mainly concerned about the fact that the planned construction would infringe on the Thurston Nature Center, one of Thurston’s most unique features, a greenspace of over 20 acres that dates back to the 1960s. The center houses multiple habitats for a myriad of unique species and provides a large space for children to run and play.
“That loss of green is a loss of play and a loss of wonder. The Thurston Nature Center has 65 species of birds and two different turtle populations,” Pravveena Ramaswami, the Committee Chair of the Thurston Nature Center told the Emery. “It would be extremely hard to recover if we lost it.”
Parents also have concerns about the safety of the children who will attend Thurston, as the elementary school will become an active construction site for many years.
An alternative plan has currently been proposed by Thurston community members, which will involve staging Thurston students at Logan Elementary, while the old Thurston will be deconstructed and then reconstructed, decreasing the loss of the Nature Center.
To learn more about the plan and situation, visit letthurstonplay.com.
Teachers and parents continue to speak out on the raise in AAPS staff healthcare
Teachers and AAPS faculty are continuing to speak out about the increase in healthcare prices for teachers.
“I can’t manage without the cost of living increases, I can’t manage healthcare increases of any kind,” AAPS teacher Laura Hudson said. “Some of us are scraping by in ways you couldn’t imagine…we are not okay.”
Many parents and community members continued to express their appreciation for AAPS teachers, and asked that they be respected and supported.
The Board has not made any decision yet, but are continuing to discuss and come to a consensus.
A recording of the meeting can be found on CTN.
The next board meeting will be on Wednesday December 11, at 7 p.m. at the Earhart Road Building. Those who are interested but unable to attend in person can also view the meeting Zoom or CTN.
