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Springs Union Free School District
Address
48 School Street
East Hampton
, Suffolk County, New York
United States
District information
Type Public
GradesPK-8 [1]
Established1784 (1784) (first school) [2]
1813 (1813) (district) [3]
PresidentBarbara Dayton [4]
Vice-presidentTimothy Frazier [4]
SuperintendentDebra Winter [5]
Business administratorMichael Henery [5]
Governing agency New York State Education Department
Schools1
Budget$30,800,134 (2021–22) [6]
NCES District ID 3627900 [1]
District ID580304020000 [7]
Students and staff
Students723 (2019–20) [1]
Teachers70 FTE (2019–20) [1]
Staff42 FTE (2019–20) [1]
Student–teacher ratio10.337 (2019–20) [1]
Other information
Website springsschool.org

Springs Union Free School District is a public school district located in East Hampton on Long Island, in Suffolk County, New York, United States. It educates students in the hamlet of Springs and the privately-owned Gardiners Island. [8] [9]

The district operates one school, the Springs School, serving grades PK through 8. [7] The total enrollment for the 2019–2020 school year was 723 students. [1] Students then complete their education at the East Hampton High School as part of a tuition agreement with the East Hampton Union Free School District. [10]

Christine Cleary is the school's principal and Debra Winter is the district's superintendent. [5] Cleary has been principal since August 2020. [11]

Springs is bordered by the East Hampton school district to the west and the Amagansett district to the south. [8]

History

Early years

In February 1784, East Hampton Town Trustees authorized the building of a schoolhouse in the "North Side" of the town. [2] It thought to have been located on the land of Elisha Miller, and was auctioned off to them in 1807. [3]

The second schoolhouse, which also served as place of worship, opened in 1807 at the authorization of a 32-man committee. [3] It was either constructed at or moved to the Village Green at the corner of Fireplace Road and Old Stone Highway. [2] The building was sold at an auction for $75 to Daniel King, who moved it to his home in Kingstown. [3]

The school district was formally founded in 1813 as School District No. 4 of the town of East Hampton. [3] The district also operated a school on Gardiners Island in 1884. [3]

Ashawagh Hall in 2020

The third schoolhouse, which was the first public school in the district, was built on the site of its predecessor in 1847 at a cost of $418. [2] [3] It was known as the "Little Red Schoolhouse." [2] In 1884, the school was expanded or rebuilt on the current site a cost of about $1,600. [3] It was sold to the Springs Historical Society in 1909 for $1 and is now part of Ashawagh Hall. [12] [3] "Ashawagh" is the Montaukett word for "meeting place." [3]

The fifth schoolhouse was the first school on the current School Street site. It was a wooden two-story building with four classrooms and was described as "one of the prettiest school buildings of its size in the county." [2] [3] The building burned to the ground in 1929, possibly due to an overheated chimney. [9] [3]

The current building is the sixth schoolhouse of the district. [3] It opened in 1931 and was expanded in 1960 to accommodate junior high students. [9] Previously, students were educated at East Hampton Middle School for grades 6 and up. [9] Later additions to the building were completed in 1966 and 1974. [3]

Recent history

In March 2018, voters approved a $23-million expansion project. [13] [14] Phase 1 installed a nitrogen-reducing septic system and Phase 2 added seven classrooms, a regulation-size gymnasium and athletic fields, as well as upgraded existing facilities in the school building. [15] The project allowed for kindergarten and first grade classrooms, formerly in separate buildings on the campus, to consolidate under one roof. [13] Prior to construction, the school was educating 743 students in a facility built for 400 students. [13] Construction began in July 2019 and wrapped up in September 2021. [14] [16] Various errors in the construction project, which the district blamed on the architectural firm, cost at least $30,000 on top of the original project's budget. [17]

Eric Casale, the school's longtime principal of 15 years, was granted a leave of absence in August 2020. [18] Assistant Principal Christine Cleary became acting principal in his absence. [11] Casale resigned from his post in December of that year and received a $300,000 settlement from the district for unknown reasons. [18] In February 2021, Cleary's promotion was made permanent. [11]

The district's pre-kindergarten program moved to the Springs Youth Association building, located just behind the school facilities, for the 2020–2021 school year. [19] Previously, pre-K was contracted to the Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center in East Hampton. [19]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for Springs Union Free School District". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Springs School History Packet". The Long Island Collection, East Hampton Library. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Springs School History". The Long Island Collection, East Hampton Library. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  4. ^ a b "The Members of the Board of Education". Springs Union Free School District. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c "Administration". Springs Union Free School District. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  6. ^ "Superintendent's Proposed Budget 2021–2022" (PDF). Springs Union Free School District. April 26, 2021. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  7. ^ a b "Springs UFSD". New York State Education Department. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  8. ^ a b "School Districts". Town of East Hampton. April 2010. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  9. ^ a b c d O'Connor, Sue Ellen (May 29, 2013). "Guestwords: Springs School Memories". The East Hampton Star. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  10. ^ Berger, Joseph (January 2, 2009). "Making Sense of School Consolidation". The New York Times. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  11. ^ a b c Sampson, Christine (February 10, 2021). "New Springs School Principal Appointed". The East Hampton Star. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  12. ^ "About". Ashawagh Hall. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  13. ^ a b c Chinese, Vera (March 7, 2018). "Springs district voters OK $23M project to expand, upgrade school". Newsday. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  14. ^ a b Keegan, Desirée (August 16, 2021). "Springs School Expansion Project To Be Completed By Start Of School". The Southampton Press. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  15. ^ "Groundbreaking for Springs School Additions & Alterations". BBS. July 1, 2019. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  16. ^ Sampson, Christine (September 23, 2021). "Springs School Starts the Year Shiny and New". The East Hampton Star. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  17. ^ Sampson, Christine (October 7, 2021). "Costs Mount in Springs School Makeover". The East Hampton Star. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  18. ^ a b Sampson, Christine (February 3, 2021). "Springs Principal Awarded $300,000 Separation Deal". The East Hampton Star. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
  19. ^ a b Sampson, Christine (April 29, 2021). "Springs Pre-K to Return to Campus". The East Hampton Star. Retrieved January 23, 2022.

External links

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