Principals tell Stoughton School Committee modular classrooms would stretch cafeterias, playgrounds and specials ahead of April 8 vote

Principals and district leaders told the Stoughton School Committee on Tuesday that adding modular classrooms across elementary sites would create substantial logistical and educational disruptions, while a proposed consolidated elementary school backed by the Massachusetts School Building Authority would restore specialized spaces and relieve overcrowding.

School principals and the superintendent described how cafeterias, kitchens and outdoor areas at Wilkins, South, Gibbons, Daw (Dawe) and Hansen elementary schools would be pushed beyond current capacity if modular classrooms are placed on-site. “If we have any more students really beyond what we currently have, we simply do not have the capacity in my cafeteria,” Wilkins Principal Miss Monahan said, describing the possibility of adding a fourth lunch and moving lunch times to as early as 10:15 a.m. or as late as 2 p.m.

Why it matters: The committee is asking residents to vote April 8 on a debt-exclusion question to fund a new consolidated elementary school. District leaders said a single new school — designed for roughly 600 students with seating that supports three lunches — would allow Stoughton to reclaim classroom space now used for art, music and libraries and to restore…