In light of the COVID-19 shutdown, we have some concerns about continuing the rezoning process this school year. In conjunction with the attendance zone committee facilitators, we are suspending work on the attendance zones until the fall of the 2020-21 school year. Any changes will not take effect until the 2021-2022 school year. Here is the rationale behind this decision:
- While the online dissemination of information and collection of feedback still provides opportunities to our community, it might limit the two-way communication and feedback we receive.
- We want to ensure that the committee will be able to evaluate the feedback in a meaningful way. Because of the complex issues we are tackling, it is unlikely that this would be possible in a digital format.
- If changes were to be made, the decision would need to happen at the April 13 Board Meeting at the very latest. We don’t want to put the committee in a position where they would be making a rushed decision.
- Waiting even a matter of weeks would push hiring decisions too far down the road and would not provide families and staff impacted by the changes ample time to plan prior to the start of the school year.
So, what’s next for this work:
- The recommendation put together by this committee represents thoughtful discussions and decisions. The District will reconvene the committee in the fall and use the current proposal as a starting point.
- District Administrators have evaluated the impact of postponing the decision for one year, and have determined it should not put schools under unreasonable pressure due to student enrollment numbers.
- Please continue to provide feedback on the proposal utilizing the online form: https://forms.gle/tHvzC4WK7E9dvypF6
Again, thank you for your patience and understanding during this challenging time.