State Approves Haverhill’s Request for Consentino Aid

A Wednesday meeting attended by Superintendent Margaret Marotta, Mayor James J. Fiorentini and Rep. Andy Vargas resulted in state aid approval to repair Haverhill’s Consentino School. (Courtesy photograph)

A Wednesday meeting attended by Superintendent Margaret Marotta, Mayor James J. Fiorentini and Rep. Andy Vargas resulted in state aid approval to repair Haverhill’s Consentino School. (Courtesy photograph)

The state’s School Building Authority Wednesday approved the City of Haverhill’s request for grant money to overhaul Consentino, bringing to fruition a longstanding effort to repair the Washington Street school.

Mayor James J. Fiorentini and Superintendent Margaret Marotta joined state Rep. Andy Vargas in Boston to petition the committee during the group’s public board meeting, making good on a statement of interest filed by the district in March.

“We can’t afford to sit by idly and watch the infrastructure in our schools crumble or the education gap widen in our district,” Vargas told WHAV in a statement after the meeting. “It’s time for us all—advocates, teachers, parents, elected officials—to step in and fight for our students’ futures.”

Fiorentini is anxious for the school’s “total renovation,” and applauded the efforts of so many citywide who worked to make the funding a reality. “Today’s approval is the result of that renewed effort and the support of many people. This is great day for the kids at Consentino School,” he said after the meeting.

As WHAV reported last month, emergency roof patchwork repairs were authorized after a storm left water pouring into classrooms and school hallways. According to Vargas, the health of city students is at risk and an urgent concern, writing in a letter to the School Building Authority “classroom building materials have been tested as positive for asbestos-containing material.”

Enrichment programs for students in the city’s Mount Washington neighborhood have also taken a hit. Science labs and a portion of the gymnasium have been converted to classrooms, while the band room has been repurposed as a cafeteria.

Funneling dollars into to the school would “allow for more personalized classroom and extracurricular time…so our city can provide the best education possible for Haverhill students,” Vargas said in the letter cosigned by his Beacon Hill colleagues.

Haverhill is one of 12 cities to make the cut from a pool of 70 aid applicants statewide. While the exact amount of aid money remains to be seen, the city is now authorized to move forward in the MSBA’s eligibility period, which kicks off a structured process that includes the formation of a project team and completion of a feasibility study. According to Fiorentini, the state is expected to cover 70 percent of upgrade costs.