Lincoln School Committee Votes to Open Fourth Kindergarten Section This Fall

LINCOLN — August 23, 2012 — Lincoln School Committee unanimously votes to open a fourth kindergarten section as enrollment exceeds preferred class sizes. Superintendent Becky McFall reported 58 students registered for kindergarten as of August 23, producing three sections of 20, 19, and 19 students — all above the district's preferred maximum of 18 — with at least one additional family expected to enroll after closing on a Lincoln home in late October. The committee, acting on McFall's recommendation and with preliminary Finance Committee backing, approved the fourth section at an estimated cost of roughly $75,000, with member Jennifer Glass urging the board to "make a kind of a solemn promise" to return those funds to the town by year's end if possible. The committee also approved a $4,860 supplemental agreement with project manager Skanska for construction manager at-risk services on the Lincoln School building project, and heard that a Maguire Group repair analysis of the existing school building put deferred maintenance costs at approximately $34 million — excluding any cafeteria improvements or educational upgrades — ahead of a November 3 Town Meeting vote on the preferred building project.