Dear Jenkintown School District Staff, Parents/Guardians, and Community Members,
We appreciate that so many of you participated in our public forum last evening, either in person or via our YouTube channel to learn about the potential opportunity for the school district to acquire use of the land, currently occupied by the apartment building at 309 Walnut Street, owned by Salem Baptist Church.
At our meeting, Reverend Marshall Mitchell, Pastor of Salem Baptist Church, explained that the 51-year old building is nearing the end of its useful life and would like to give Jenkintown first consideration for the land use, either through a purchase, or a long-term rental agreement. Reverend Mitchell explained that he will take every effort to ensure that there are affordable housing solutions for residents and will work with them through any transitions that might occur in the future.
The school district is just beginning to consider the viability of this potential project, and we want to emphasize that no decisions have been made and no changes are imminent. It will take a considerable amount of time just to evaluate the feasibility of this potential initiative.
Last evening was the first of many opportunities for public input. In the upcoming months, we will be sending out a community feedback form, holding additional informational meetings to solicit feedback, and distributing related information.
Some of the possibilities we might consider include:
- Increased academic opportunities (such as STEAM – Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics learning labs; larger spaces that provide more opportunities for students to collaborate in modern ways; increased space for additional classrooms)
- Adequate space for special education learning and services
- Opportunities to expand our performing arts spaces
- Space for mental health services for students
- Improvements to sports facilities
- Early childhood educational services for preschool children
- Partnerships with higher education
As you are likely aware, the Jenkintown school district does not have many options for expansion because available space and properties within district boundaries are extremely limited. This makes the potential acquisition of this property an opportunity that we feel we should consider exploring.
If you were unable to attend the meeting or watch the live stream, you can access the archived meeting below.
I want to emphasize that there will be ample opportunities for public input; and if the District does decide to move forward with this project, we will work closely with impacted families to support and assist as needed.
Also, it is our intention to fund this initiative primarily through available grants and donations, with minimal use of District funds or impact to taxpayers.
The next steps for this initiative include evaluating conceptual site designs, drafting preliminary plans for a rendered site plan and basic floor plans, estimating related costs for the project, searching for associated grant opportunities, and exploring potential donor support.
We will be sending out a community feedback survey in January and will hold our next community forum in late February/early March to share developments and solicit further input.
We would like to thank Pastor Mitchell and the Salem Baptist Church for their strong community partnership with The School District of Jenkintown. We sincerely appreciate this potential opportunity and we look forward to collaboratively planning and innovating for the future of our school district.
Respectfully,
Jill A. Takacs, Ed.D.
