By Lindsay Tice,Staff Writer

BRUNSWICK – More than half of the 450 elementary students at Coffin School are Navy kids. They come and go, landing in Brunswick for a few years before Mom or Dad gets whisked away to a new base.

The students are a constant tide. When one Navy kid leaves, a new one enrolls close behind.

“It happens so often it’s just part of life here at Coffin,” said Principal Walter Wallace.

But when the Brunswick Naval Air Station closes in a few years, that tide will stop. Wallace will say lots of goodbyes. And no more hellos.

Half of his school will be gone.

“It will be impossible to replace these kids,” Wallace said.

A day after the Base Realignment and Closure Commission voted to close the decades-old Navy base, Brunswick’s school officials remained stunned and saddened.

Enrollment, funding – life in general – will soon completely change.

Great volunteers, too

Brunswick will lose about 700 kids – or 20 percent of its students – when the base shuts down. Officials say the most devastating loss will be the loss of people.

Most of the Navy kids come from other parts of the country or the world, representing various races, religions and ethnic backgrounds. They’ve turned the ordinary Maine school system into one of the most diverse in the state.

“If you’re teaching about other parts of the world, many of these kids have been there. That really enriches the classroom,” said Superintendent James Ashe.

Adults get involved with the school system, too. Whole squadrons routinely adopt schools or classrooms, coming in to tutor kids, clean up playgrounds, serve as mentors.

Retirees often enjoy the town so much that they stay for good, putting their military expertise to use for the school system.

The facilities manager, for example, is a former chief engineer.

“I’m able to hire some fantastic people to work in the school system. I’ve been a little spoiled. I’m going to miss that,” Ashe said.

But while school officials say they’re most saddened by the loss of people, the base closure will affect much more. Everything in the school system, from its nearly $30 million budget to its recently approved plan for a new elementary school, will likely take a hit.

Federal funds dry up

With no military kids, the school system won’t be eligible for the $700,000 to $1 million it gets annually from the federal government. That funding will disappear slowly as the students move away.

Also, with 20 percent fewer students, state aid will drop. The education commissioner plans to introduce a bill at the next state legislative session to ease that loss for Brunswick and other towns that deal with a sudden dip in enrollment. School officials also hope new families – with kids – will move into Brunswick, leaving high-priced southern Maine towns for more affordable housing there.

“I see those houses filling very quickly,” Wallace said.

With fewer kids, a plan to refurbish or replace the old Hawthorne School may also be in danger. That 110-student elementary school recently won the last coveted spot on the state’s school construction list, meaning Brunswick is set to get a lot of state money to fix it or build anew.

Now, state officials will talk with school officials about their options. But Ashe plans to push for the new school. He believes even the base closure won’t be enough to ease his overcrowding problems.

“If all the military kids left tomorrow, I’d still have space needs,” he said.

The school system has no single, concrete plan yet for dealing with the loss of students, volunteers and money. It will take years for the military to close the base completely.

It’s time school officials say they’ll need.

“I’m glad we have a couple of years to figure this out,” Ashe said.

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