BCTHSNinth-grade decision might come next month
Posted: Tuesday, September 27, 2011 12:00 am | Updated: 5:53 am, Tue Sep 27, 2011.
The Bucks County Technical High School joint school board committee delayed a decision at its Monday night meeting on whether to keep ninth grade at the Bristol Township school for the 2012-2013 school year.
Joint board member Harry Kramer of Bensalem said the board wanted to take a vote on the issue Monday night but held off because only eight of the 14 board members were present. He said a vote will likely come at the next meeting Oct. 24.
Delaying a decision any longer than another month would not be fair to students interested in attending BCTHS as a ninth-grader starting in 2012-2013, said Kramer.
“It’s very important we send a message for 2012-2013 and out that there will be a ninth grade here,” he said. “Parents and prospective students need to know that so they can make their own decisions.”
The technical school is a full-time, comprehensive facility that offers both academic and vocational instruction to students drawn from the Bensalem, Bristol, Bristol Township, Morrisville, Neshaminy and Pennsbury school districts.
Ninth-graders spend part of the time taking academic courses and part sampling the many vocational offerings at BCTHS to help them decide which one to concentrate on starting in 10th grade. This year, there are 1,409 students at BCTHS, including 489 ninth-graders.
Joint school board member John Doyle of Bristol brought up the issue of dropping the ninth grade at BCTHS, saying it would save money. He said the entire Bristol school board supports the idea.
However, joint school board members from the larger districts like Neshaminy and Bensalem say dropping ninth grade at BCTHS would just increase expenses at their home school districts.
While Kramer said he would like to vote to keep ninth grade permanently, BCTHS Administrative Director Leon Poeske said the board could decide to keep revisiting the issue year by year if members choose.
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