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Allen ISD attendance zone realignment approaches final draft
Map courtesy of Allen ISD - The map shows the proposed elementary school attendance zone boundaries as presented to the AISD Board of Trustees on Dec. 17. The recommendations reflect current and projected enrollment data as well as input from residents.
By Monique Oaks, moaks@starlocalnews.com
There will be some new desks to fill in Allen ISD when Lois A. Lindsey Elementary School opens in the fall.
And there have already been some tests.
District officials have been studying demographics data, projecting school enrollments through 2022, optimizing building usages at 90 percent of their capacity, and adding fiscal impacts, programs for special populations, student safety and other considerations. They drafted an initial proposal of attendance zones based on these parameters and presented it to the AISD Board of Trustees.
Beth Nicholas, AISD assistant superintendent for learner services, presented the new proposal at the Dec. 17 board meeting and summarized the steps taken in the rezoning process since it began in August.
Meeting attendees also heard further commentary from residents in neighborhoods affected by the proposed changes. Over the past several months, the district collected input from residents through various means, including two parent meetings that Nicholas said were "very well attended." These were held at Cheatham Elementary in October and Curtis Middle School in November.
"We had probably 3[00]-400 people at each meeting, and we received hundreds of emails and phone calls" as well as some community petitions, Nicholas said.
Based in part on this input, the revised plan shows elementary students from the Claremont Springs neighborhood will continue to attend Chandler, while children from Ten Oaks will stay with Marion, Allen Estates will go to Olson, and the downtown area will be zoned to Reed.
Enrollments at Curtis, Ereckson and Ford middle schools in the new plan are balanced and within the three schools' capacities, Nicholas said, and certain grandfathering allowances are included, as well.
"Through discussions and through input ... we came up with the best - in our opinion - option that is out there," Nicholas said. "Nothing is perfect, but it addressed many of the concerns that community members brought up, and so we felt good that we were able to address some of the concerns people had."
For the 30-minute open forum portion of the meeting, 16 people signed up to participate. Board President Gary Stocker doubled that time after the first half hour was up and not all had spoken.
Bill Walker, who has two daughters at Boon, summed it up for many when he said, "It's an emotional deal for everybody. Nobody wants to move their schools."
While most of those who spoke during the open forum were opposed to the realignments, not all were; and many thanked the district and the board for the opportunity to express their feelings either way. And with the meeting being close on the heels of the Newtown, Conn., tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary, a few voiced security concerns.
Keith Mann, a former police officer who has two sons who attend Chandler, asked that the magnetic locks on the front doors at the school be activated. His idea, which, he said, could be implemented immediately and with no cost, brought a standing ovation from the audience.
"I normally don't get involved in things, but this just struck a chord with me," Mann said.
Since the open forum took place before Nicholas made her presentation later in the evening, many of the speakers addressed issues that they didn't know had already been included in the revised plan.
"At build-out we're expecting about 22,500-23,000 students, something like that, and we're right at 20,000 now," Nicholas said of the district as a whole. "The majority of the growth right now is on the west side, and so with this plan ... it's created a little bit more space on the west side in case there's additional growth that we haven't foreseen."
That unforeseen growth, Nicholas said, could happen if, for example, a property were rezoned from commercial to residential.
"We're getting close to the end," said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Ken Helvey. "That's what makes this conversation so difficult. Because it's kind of razor-thin there, and then there's another era the district will go through, of decline. And we already know the difficulties we're having right now with balancing enrollments in existing campuses, not related to a new campus opening; it's a challenge."
"This has been a long, difficult, emotional process, as you all know, and one thing that we did see as a consensus [is] that everybody loves their current school," Nicholas said. "... And history has shown us that once people get in their new schools, that they do love it just as much as their old schools.
"At the end of the day, we all are still Allen Eagles," Nicholas said. "So that's one positive thing here."
The board will discuss the recommendations at its next meeting, scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29, at the Allen City Hall, 305 Century Parkway.
Find Allen ISD attendance zone realignment information - including original and revised proposals and maps, and questions and answers - at http://www.allenisd.org/Page/175
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