Teacher asks board to keep focus global Educator advocates for older schools in light of new school opening BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer MILLSTONE - A fourth-grade teacher recently told the Board of Education that it has focused so much on the new middle school in recent years that it has neglected the primary and elementary schools. Irene Pearson, a teacher at Millstone Township Elementary School, made the comments at the Aug. 13 Board of Education meeting. Board member and Operations Committee Chairman Thomas Foley had announced at the meeting that the new middle school on Baird Road would open on time and within budget. He said that the school would hold an open house Aug. 18, with tours from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Dana Corneau, another fourth-grade teacher and a resident of Millstone, said the district still has trailers at the former middle school, which will become the elementary school this fall, on Millstone Road. She said that playground work at the site cannot be done until all the trailers are removed. Board of Education President Mary Ann Friedman said that one of the trailers had been removed that evening and the rest are for sale. Superintendent of Schools Mary Anne Donahue said the trailers that are not sold would be moved off-site for the playground work to begin. Donahue said that all construction work on the primary and elementary schools would be completed by the time school starts in September. According to Donahue, the administration has already moved into the buildings and furniture has been moved into the classrooms. Pearson said she has been attending board meetings for the past year and a half, asking questions about the playground. "It's now August," she said. "The trailers are still there. Do you have a date or a timeline?" Donahue said she did not have an exact schedule for the removal of the trailers. She also said that the playground equipment, ordered in May, has not yet been delivered. At that point, Pearson made a statement about the board's lack of focus on the older schools. "The board should think about what needs to be done," she said, citing the need for updated lighting as one example. She continued, "All children deserve a state-of-the-art school." Pearson told the board that third-, fourth- and fifth-grade students are sorely lacking in some of the things that the new middle school will offer. She added that she has not seen any real renovations done to the older schools. The teacher also noted that a large number of teachers left the school district this year, and alleged that most left for more money in other districts. In addition, Pearson told the board that she knows current staff members who are looking for other jobs. "The board needs to look at making this a place where we all want to be," she said.