> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.middletownobserver.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Q&A: Dr. Joseph Meloche, Superintendent of RTMSD (Pt. 1) - URL: https://www.middletownobserver.com/qa-dr-joseph-meloche-superintendent-part-1/ - Published: 2026-07-31T15:10:26.000Z - Updated: 2026-07-31T15:10:26.000Z - Description: Superintendent Joseph Meloche and district Communications Coordinator Barbara Wilson on why a dedicated K-1 building beats an addition. Part 1 of 2. - Author: Paul, Middletown Observer - Tags: Rose Tree Media School District MEDIA, Pa. — Dr. Joseph Meloche recently sat down with Middletown Observer for an interview about the proposed K-1 Center, joined by Barbara Wilson, the district's Communications Coordinator & Grant Writer. Rather than recapping the general project, I wanted to ask him about the [current issues Middletown residents are discussing](https://www.middletownobserver.com/rose-tree-media-k1-center-explained/). This is part one of two. I'll publish part two before the Middletown Planning Commission meeting (unconfirmed but likely) on Tuesday, August 11. *Discussion has been edited for length and clarity.* ### **Middletown Observer: What can a dedicated K-1 center do that an addition to an elementary school can't?** **Dr. Meloche:** Most schools are designed for the largest, oldest children who will be in them, because you need that space. When an elementary school is built to house kids up through fifth or sixth grade, and you're looking at 10-, 11-, and possibly 12-year-olds, they're much bigger. So the bathrooms, toilets, sinks, and playgrounds are all sized for older kids. That can be overwhelming for a five-year-old when they enter school for the first time. A building layout designed specifically for five- and six-year-olds gives you classrooms built in pods with a shared common area, so there's opportunity to move space and share space. We'll have modular desks and equipment that can move, classroom walls at the child's height, and bathrooms designed for that age group. One of the most important things for the younger children is learning school. Certain parts of that have not changed in 70 years: arrival, dismissal. Kindergartners in an elementary school are, at best, invited guests. If you have an assembly, they're the last ones in and the first ones out. They need more transitions in what goes on during the course of their day. The biggest opportunity this building gives us is introducing full-day kindergarten, which we don't currently offer. We're one of only a handful of districts in Delaware, Chester, and Montgomery counties that does not offer full-day kindergarten. What we are asking children to do in a two-and-a-half-hour program is almost untenable. The new building will have three separate outdoor recess areas, including equipment and space designed for children, including an area to be designed for children with special needs. We've seen a more than 25 percent year-over-year increase in kids coming out of early intervention in Delaware County over the last two years. It's our responsibility to provide and to meet the needs of those children, which we take very seriously. Bringing all the kindergartners and first graders together also lets us identify strengths, weaknesses, and children that may need some sort of intervention. The more that we can provide to help and support them in kindergarten and first grade, the more successful they will be in later grades. The longer kids are with us, the more successful they are going to be. ### **Middletown Observer: Residents have suggested going back to the drawing board and taking more time for this process. What's the downside of running on trailers?** **Dr. Meloche:** First, cost. We're paying for those, and it's money that just goes away, since they're temporary by design. They're separated from the main building. In order to make sure that they are secure, there is a high chain link fence that's around. This is really not the image of what we want our children to be experiencing on a daily basis in school. We can do a lot better with where we are and what we're doing. And the trailers may be temporary, but the children living through them for years aren't. This community has grown significantly over the past decade, and people will keep raising families here. A big part of a community's value is the quality of its schools. \[A permanent building\] is also a better long-term investment over time. It's more effective to maintain, efficient to heat and cool. **Barbara Wilson, Communications Coordinator & Grant Writer for Rose Tree Media School District:** Using these modular units as a stopgap has shown us that simply adding classrooms to existing buildings doesn't solve the problem. Otherwise everyone would be fine, and kids wouldn't be crammed into cafeterias, and we wouldn't be worrying about how to fit everyone for assemblies. **Dr. Meloche:** At Glenwood, with a school day of about six-and-a-half hours, lunch runs close to four hours just to cycle kids through the cafeteria. New state legislation taking effect next summer requires a minimum of 30 minutes each for recess and lunch, which will extend things further under our current setup. The ability to cycle that many kids into a cafeteria and to have access to food is overwhelming. **Barbara Wilson:** Parents at Glenwood said as much at \[the July Planning Commission\] meeting. They're living it, and they know it's not a solution. ### **Middletown Observer: Would it be fair to say buying new property would eventually require a bigger tax increase than this project?** **Dr. Meloche:** Buying a property would absolutely cost more than what we're currently designing, just at face value. If we have to stop, we've already invested money in the design and engineering process over the last 20 months. \[Buying new land\] would mean setting all that aside. Design has to be very specific for the property on which it's going to sit. It's starting over again, which is continuing to spend more money, which makes it more expensive, and takes longer. ### **Middletown Observer: Have you made changes to the plan based on community feedback so far?** **Dr. Meloche:** The biggest change was the introduction of the road that connects the parking lot from Penncrest High School to the new school, and not bringing any buses in off of Rose Tree Road. We had a committee of 30 people or so from across the district to talk about full day kindergarten. And then I've talked to people from other places throughout the district. ### **Middletown Observer: Anything else Middletown residents should understand?** **Dr. Meloche:** Our budget year opened July 1 and we're currently in the audit process for last year's budget. Everything is public, all the numbers are put out. We will start working on the 2027-2028 budget in October and then we'll work through until April-ish. Typically, the state releases the Act 1 Index (*maximum that school taxes can be increased*) in November, December. When you look at that, there are only a couple of times that we've gone to the top. The current year is a 3.5 percent increase. Last year the board approved us for a 2.5 percent increase and we only used 1.6 percent. That 3.5 percent increase covers our entire regular operating budget: teachers, bus fuel, utilities, debt service. A school district should never be debt-free; we need to take advantage of the opportunities that we have because there is always work that needs to be done. I can tell you that the board will vote for us not to exceed the Act 1 Index in December, as they do every year. Because if they did, that would require a public referendum. We have to live within our means, and we take that very seriously.