In a Monday night meeting, the Newton School Committee discussed a presentation given by Chief Operating Officer Josh Morse recommending against the consolidation of the Ward and Underwood elementary schools. 

Mayor Marc Laredo, a former school committee chair, said he urged the committee to approve Morse’s plan once the time comes to vote on the future of the two schools.

Morse previously presented on the issue in a virtual public hearing last Tuesday, where community members shared their approval of his recommendation to proceed with separate renovation projects.

The COO said the long-term cost savings between the two options were minimal. He told the committee he predicted an increase in bus ridership as a result of the consolidation, eliminating savings caused by staff reductions in operating one school.

“If you have one consolidated school for both the Ward and Underwood districts, which is a very large land area, you’re going to want to have a little more flexibility and capacity built in there, just because when you’re talking about over the next century—which is very hard to predict out that far—you’re going to want to make sure you have some capacity to handle that ebb and flow that’s naturally going to occur.”

Jason Bhardwaj of Ward 3, the committee’s vice chair, said, for him, the decision will come down to the question of capital savings.

“So much of our operations [costs] are driven by student-ratio things,” he said following the presentation. “I hadn’t thought of the bus impact but that resonates with me as well.” 

During the discussion, Morse brought up how Newton closed a few elementary schools in the 1990s, a decision that some now regret due to the unexpected increase in enrollment that happened in the following decades. He added that in speaking with dozens of community members, he gathered that people are drawn to the feeling of a “city of small towns” with neighborhood schools. 

“What people are able to do is live in close proximity to Boston … but they get to live in a small community,” he said. “Even though Newton is very large, it feels like that small quintessential town.”

Whether the city decides to proceed with separate construction projects or a consolidated new school, the work ahead will take years, Morse said. In the meantime, he said short-term renovations may need to be made to support current students.

The next meeting, set to include a possible vote on a path forward, is scheduled for June 15.