School Construction and Assignment
The impact of this growth has been felt in our schools. The community has generously supported school construction. Forty-two new schools have been built since 1992, and more are being built. Due to generous community support, the PLAN 2000 and 2004 school construction programs will add 24 new schools between 2004 and 2008.
New schools can't be built fast enough to keep pace with growth. Eleven schools operate on a year-round calendar. Our students attend classes in 650 mobile units. School principals and teachers have been creative in meeting student needs, adopting office and storage spaces for instruction or storing their school materials on a cart to wheel into available space for instruction. The process of assigning students to schools can ensure that school campuses are used efficiently.
As schools' neighborhoods change over time, reassignment ensures that existing schools make best use of the classroom seats already in place. When a school is overcrowded, it does not function efficiently as core facilities such as cafeterias and media centers are strained.
Without attention to student assignment patterns - as well as our strong magnet programs - our school district would experience many empty classroom seats in some parts of the county and overcrowded schools in others. Many students would not receive the attention they deserve.