NOTICE: The Borough of Crafton has adopted a resolution opposing any and all attempts to close Crafton Elementary.
Click here to read the Crafton Borough resolution.
Major changes could soon be happening in the Carlynton School District. The School Board is conducting a district-wide feasibility study to consider what to do with its 3 school buildings. The options may include one or more of the following:
- Closing Carnegie Elementary
- Closing Crafton Elementary
- Renovating and updating Carnegie Elementary
- Renovating and updating Crafton Elementary
- Build a combined elementary school (possibly near the high school – this land is in Robinson Township and not within our district)
Recently, the Post Gazette mistakenly reported that any construction would not take place in our school district until 2016. School officials acknowledge that is incorrect. A decision will be made about the future of the district within months!
If We Lose Our COMMUNITY SCHOOLS, EVERYONE loses!
Home Owners – Potential property tax increase and a decline in property values.
Parents – The loss of a smaller, caring learning environment for your children.
Business Owners – Decreased customer traffic, loss of revenue.
Residents – The loss of a community hub, vacant abandoned buildings in the center of our towns, loss of young families from our communities.
IT IS POSSIBLE to renovate and update older school buildings. Many local school districts have already done it successfully at a fraction of new construction cost. Many other Western-PA school districts have successfully updated older elementary buildings, bringing them up to 21st-century educational standards AND retaining the benefits of neighborhood schools. The PA-Dept of Education found that it is almost 50% LESS EXPENSIVE to renovate than to build a new facility. In their presentation to the school board, even the architects hired by the district estimated renovation costs OVER 50% CHEAPER than new construction.
