By Nathan Duke
Staff Writer

To combat classroom overcrowding, new third-grade students originally destined to attend Maple Avenue Elementary in the fall will be sent to Bartlett Elementary.

Currently, Maple Avenue second-grade classes average 24.6 students among the five classrooms.

Goffstown's SAU recommends 16 to 22 students per class for kindergarten through second grade classrooms and 19 to 24 for third through sixth.

Maple Avenue only has 23 classrooms. First-, third- and fourth-grade classes each have six classrooms, while second grade has five classrooms.

In the fall, the third grade will have five classrooms because the current second-grade class has 123 students, the smallest class size.

However, Maple Avenue Principal Marc Boyd said the class started out at 117 students at the beginning of the school year.

He said the class is already over the suggested SAU classroom size. Therefore, thirdgrade students new to the school in the fall will now be attending Bartlett Elementary, where classroom size for second grade is an average of 18 students per class.

SAU Superintendent Darrell Lockwood said the transfer of new students from Maple Avenue to Bartlett will ensure better education for students at both schools.

"We want to be able to give each child a quality education," he said. "With smaller numbers, we can give more personalized attention to each student."

Parents pleased
The decision to send new students to Bartlett has pleased several parents, whose children were nearly transferred from Maple Avenue to Bartlett. Originally, 14 second-grade students from Maple Avenue were going to be sent to Bartlett in the fall.

Ron Michaud, whose son is a second-grader at Maple Avenue, said he moved his family to Goffstown from Gloucester, Mass., so his son could attend the school.

"I.m happy he doesn't have to leave his friends, who he has known for two years," he said. "I think the school has made the correct decision for the wellbeing of the children. I am definitely relieved."

Boyd said the reassigned students will enjoy a "wonderful" atmosphere at Bartlett.

"Bartlett and Maple Avenue are similar," he said. "They have the same curriculum and same programs. You could easily slide a student into Bartlett (from Maple Avenue), or a student from (Maple Avenue) into Bartlett."

He said if any parents of Maple Avenue students are interested in sending their children to Bartlett, they may contact him or the SAU.

Boyd said he is not surprised at the growth of the student body at Maple Avenue.

"Goffstown is a very desirable community," he said. "This is reflected in the schools, youth programs and churches. Schools grow in leaps and bounds when you live in such a nice community."