By Darrell Halen

Freshman Chris DiPersio likes going to Salem High School, where is he actively involved in the band program.

And he wants to stay there, even though his town will be opening a brand-new high school next year.

DiPersio was one of several students and parents who weighed in at a Windham School Board meeting on whether Windham High School should start with four grades – or as few as two – when it opens its doors in fall 2009.

More than a year ago, the School Board voted to have a full school – grades 9 through 12 – when the school opens.

But recently, several parents and students have asked the School Board to reverse its decision and open the school with only freshmen and sophomores and allow juniors and seniors to finish their careers at Salem High School before Windham High School becomes a full school.

They made their arguments late last year and aired them again at the board’s Tuesday, Jan. 22, meeting.

The last two years of high school are particularly important for students because that’s when they are gearing up for college, some of them said.

“Eleventh and 12th grades are where you’re taking the courses, applying to colleges and becoming integrated in a system that is going to move you into the college of your choice if that’s the field you want to go into,” said Renee Solomon, a mother of a freshman and a junior at Salem High.

Another mother, Lisa Van Berlo, said it was unconscionable for the School Board to move students out of Salem during those years.

“It’s like transplanting a tree in the middle of winter. It makes no sense,” said Van Berlo. “This does not just affect a class ring. It’s their future.”

School Board members did not make a decision that night. Some said they were receptive to receiving more information before doing so.

School Board member Barbara Coish, however, said she would not change her vote, and another member, Beverly Donovan, said she thinks the board should stick with its plan to open with four grades.

It’s a decision that is not easy for School Board members because they know some people will be unhappy with whatever decision they make.

“None of these solutions are terrific,” said Superintendent Frank Bass. “None of them solve all the issues. With each solution you propose, there are drawbacks.”

Currently, about 650 Windham students attend Salem High School, with Windham paying to send those students there through an agreement between the two communities.

Salem is willing to take Windham students as tuition students after Windham opens its own high school. Several people said they believe that if the Windham school opens for all four grades, there might be few upperclassmen there because many parents will opt to keep their children in Salem.

Those who do go to Windham, some said, may be those students whose parents can’t afford the tuition.

Several students told the board they’re unsure if Windham’s high school will provide the same opportunities they enjoy in Salem. And they don’t like the idea of leaving some of their schoolmates.

“We’ve met many people and met new friends,” said freshman Kim Movsesian, adding that students at Salem High, despite coming from two towns, think of themselves as one community.

“They’re part of a community. It’s extremely difficult for (them) to abandon that community and come to a new school,” Bass said.

About 40 people attended the meeting, and several speakers drew applause when they finished their remarks.

Not everyone, however, believes the school should have only freshmen and sophomores when it opens. Some parents have said they are concerned that the school will lack a “critical mass” of students to support a genuine high school experience for their children.

One parent, Patty Michal, asked the School Board to think about the students who are currently in middle school and will be in the new high school.

“There are a lot of (kids) who have to go to that high school who want a real high school experience,” she said. “A school with two grades, to me, is truly not a high school experience.”

Another mother, Cindy Hastings, said she worries about the message sent to the community at a time when the School Board is asking for more money to provide additional athletic facilities at Windham High School.

“To me, if you open a high school with just two classes, it says to the voters: We don’t need the facilities, we don’t need the fields and we can put off those things,” she said.