Four town halls are being hosted by Dearborn Public Schools for Fielding International to discuss its work to create a long-range plan for the district’s buildings.
Visioning the Future Town Halls will be held on Feb. 6 and 7, 2023. Parents, students, staff, residents and other stakeholders can attend any of the meetings in person to learn more and to ask questions or offer suggestions. Two meetings will also be shown live via the district’s YouTube channel. The same information will be presented at all four sessions.
The meeting schedule includes:
- Monday, Feb. 6 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Dearborn High. This meeting will also be shown online.
- Monday, Feb. 6 from 7-8:30 p.m. at Edsel Ford High. This meeting is only in-person.
- Tuesday, Feb. 7 from 2-3:30 p.m. at Salina Intermediate. This meeting is only in-person.
- Tuesday, Feb. 7, 6:30-8 p.m. at Fordson High School. This meeting will also be shown online.
Questions or comments can be submitted before the meetings via a Google Form at bit.ly/DbnTownHall2-23. The form will open a week before the meetings. It will also be available during the live, online events to submit comments or questions.
For those who cannot attend a live event, one of the broadcasted meetings will be posted for on-demand viewing on the district’s YouTube channel.
“We hope community members will take some time to take part in these interactive meetings so they can ask questions, offer input, and contribute to the future vision of the Dearborn Public Schools. This plan could influence our district for decades to come,” said Superintendent Glenn Maleyko.
Fielding International is developing a 30-year facilities plan for the district. So far the Fielding team has held 29 focus group meetings with more than 460 participants, including 200 students. They have also received feedback from more than 1,800 survey responses. At the town hall meetings, the company will present what work it has done so far and seek further insight from the community. A final report is expected to the Board of Education in March.
Fielding representatives gave trustees an update on the plan’s development at the January board meeting. The slide presentation from the meeting is available on the district’s Facilities Planning page.
“We are at a very exciting point in the history of our district. This is not just about updating buildings, but how the learning environment in our schools can be adapted, changed, renovated or even new schools added to best serve the instructional needs of all students,” Dr. Maleyko added.
In March 2022, a citizen’s committee recommended the district pursue a bond referendum on the November 2022 ballot to fund needed infrastructure work in the district. Before going out for a bond, the Board of Education asked that a 30-year facilities plan be created to provide a better long-term picture of what building and educational needs are going to be in the coming decades.
Fielding International was hired in September to conduct that study.