Bethlehem parents protest Lab School closure
DELMAR, N.Y. (NEWS10) – After Bethlehem Central School District announced the Lab School program at the high school would phase out, many parents and students are protesting against the change. Last week, the district announced they would be phasing out the program due to low enrollment and scheduling issues. Erica O’Brien is one of the parents protesting against the decision.
“This is the wrong move,” O’Brien said. “This is a great program, and many kids benefit from this program. The kids who are not ‘honor students,’ and the kids who are not ‘AP students’… Those are the kids who really benefit from this program. There should be something for those kids.”
Other parents, like Heather White, said the program is what brought them to the district in the first place.
“We chose Bethlehem like when we were house hunting way back when,” she said. “And overall, we’ve been tremendously lucky in Bethlehem.”
She said that’s because her family could take advantage of programs like the lab school, a smaller school within the high school that challenged students academically while preparing them for college.
Her daughter Pam graduated from Bethlehem High School last year. She said the program was challenging- but rewarding.
“It fully prepared me for what I had to do here [in college],” she said. “ I wrote an 11-page research paper last semester, and I would not have known where to start if it hadn’t been for the Lab School.”
School officials say students in grades 10 and 11 can continue the program through graduation in 2025 and 2026.
However, current 9th-grade Lab School students will be enrolled in regular high school classes beginning with the new school year in September.
“I’m just really disappointed and frustrated in the school and the district,” Erica O’Brien said. “I feel that it’s a very great program. I feel that this is the way school is trending. To be more cohesive, do more research projects, and work together as a team.”
In a Message to parents and students, Jody Monroe, Superintendent for Bethlehem Central School District, shared the following:
“This is news that comes with a lot of emotion attached to it, not only for our students but for faculty, families, and alumni. Lab School represents one of our essential core values, which is community. We will do everything we can to support the Lab School community throughout this period of transition.”
The next board of education meeting is on February 7. Even though the lab school is not on the agenda, school officials said they expect students and parents to continue to voice their concerns during the meeting.