Hopatcong Votes To Close Hudson Maxim Elementary School

HOPATCONG, NJ — The Hopatcong Board of Education voted at Monday night's board meeting to shutter the Hudson Maxim School amid declining enrollment and cuts in state aid.

The school will close at the end of the 2018-2019 school year. The public was involved in the decision making process, with three single-issue meetings held over the past month to discuss the logistics of shutting down the school.

In a resolution approving the closure, the Board of Education said enrollment in the district was at less than 50 percent. Enrollment has decreased 34 percent in the past ten years, while costs have risen 61 percent. The district is also set to lose $8.8 million in state aid over the next six school years.

Durban Ave School will now be home to pre-k, kindergarten and first grade. Tulsa Trail will continue to house grades two and three. The middle school will house grades four through seven, with Tracy Hensz serving as co-principal for the two lower grades and Lewis Benfatti serving as co-principal for the upper to grades.

The high school will also have co-principals. The school will now be home to grade eight with co-principal Jeff Hallenbeck, and grades nine through ten with current principal Emil Binotto.

Hudson Maxim was first opened in 1908, and has reached capacity. Officials say the pre-k, kindergarten and first grades are the only age cohort where they are seeing growth, and the school can't accommodate it.

The board voted to sell the building and the property.

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