School Board could decide on proposed changes Oct. 12
By Jason Arndt
Staff Writer
The Board of Education for the Burlington Area School District could decide on new elementary school boundaries as early as its Oct. 12 regular meeting, district officials said Tuesday.
The new boundaries, which have been the topic of an ongoing discussion at the committee level, were presented to Board of Education on Sept. 21 by Adam Lang and Carrie Douglas from the Attendance Boundary Committee.
Redrawing attendance boundaries on the elementary school level is an extension of a November 2018 referendum approved by taxpayers.
According to the announcement, district officials believe they can fulfill the goal of implementing the plan beginning in the fall 2021, adding the objective is to reduce the number of transitions with a new grade configuration.
The new configuration looks to reduce crowding in some schools by distributing K-5 students across five elementary schools.
“Redrawing the district boundaries is new and exciting for the Burlington area community. It also means change. The culture and climate for each elementary school will be transformed by having fewer students (or in some cases more students), a change in building staff, and significant renovations to school buildings,” the district said in its statement.
Proposed boundaries
The committee selected Option D, according to the district, stating it offers the most efficient use of all five elementary school buildings in an equitable distribution.
“It allows for potential enrollment growth at Winkler,” the district said, adding that area is identified as prime for housing development south of the Highway 11 bypass.
“The majority of students changing schools will attend Dyer (210 to 242 students) with a small cohort of 27 to 60 students changing to another district school.”
Of the 69 neighborhoods, 26 will change attendance areas, the fewest among the five options presented.
The boundary map will also reunify students from the Eagle Lake area at one school.
The process began last fall when the district hired MDRoffers Consulting to analyze enrollment, community demographic trends, and housing growth opportunities. The consulting firm then subdivided the Burlington area into 69 neighborhoods.
The Attendance Boundary Committee took many items into consideration, including projected enrollment and building utilization, reducing impact on students as well as fiscal responsibility.
Click the following link to download the full statement issued by the Burlington Area School District: BASD Boundaries
To read the entire story see the Sept. 24 edition of the Burlington Standard Press.
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