Board Nears Approval of 2006-07 Growth Management Plan
Board makes changes in March 21 afternoon work session
March 21, 2006 - In an afternoon work session on the 2006-07 Growth Management Plan, the Board of Education removed two nodes and allowed an earlier change to return to the plan.
The board agreed in a straw vote that
· 2 nodes being moved from Middle Creek HS to Garner HS were removed
from plan and will remain at Middle Creek. Nodes 470.2, 470.3.
· 1 nodes being moved from Garner HS to Middle Creek HS was returned
to the plan and will move to Middle Creek HS. Node: 613.
Board member Horace Tart asked that nodes 470.2 and 470.3 be removed from
the plan and allowed to stay at Middle Creek High. Board members agreed.
Node 470.2 has 14 high school students. Node 470.3 has 25 high school students.
Dr. Ramey Beavers said families from node 613, which is adjacent to nodes 470.2 and 470.3 had indicated they were interested in keeping this neighborhood together and wanted node 613 sent to the same school as nodes 470.2 and 470.3. Board members agreed that allow three nodes send students to Middle Creek High. Node 613 has 12 high school students.
The board's action trimmed the original proposal down to 9,377. No other changes were made in the board work session. Several board members indicated they may bring additional changes to the board table when the plan comes up for final vote later today.
The work session took place during the board's committee of the whole meeting this afternoon. It follows a public hearing last night when the board heard from 13 speakers. The speakers commented on board actions in the March 8 Board of Education work session that added their families to the plan.
Last night's public hearing was another opportunity for community input in a process that began last fall with a series of 12 community engagement meetings. WCPSS staff posted a draft proposal in December that included 11,495 students and resulted in more than 2,000 comments from families. These comments were used to provide the board Feb. 14 a growth management plan that included 10,258 students. The board held a series of six public hearings where they heard from more than 500 speakers. Board members discussed the comments they had received and made changes to the plan in the March 8 work session.
The agenda for the board's meeting t at 4 this afternoon includes the final vote on the 2006-07 Growth Management Plan.
The growth management plan fills seven new schools opening for 2006-07, relieves crowding at existing schools and helps the school system respond to the tremendous increase in students. Student enrollment increased by 6,400 students this year and is expected to increase by 7,000 for 2006-07.
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Board listens to comments in March 20 public hearing
March 21, 2006 - In a final public hearing last night on the 2006-07 Growth Management Plan, the Board of Education heard from 13 speakers who commented on board actions in the March 8 Board of Education work session that added their families to the plan.
In the nine-hour March 8 work session, the board made a number of changes to the plan. Board members agreed to remove 41 nodes from the plan, add seven nodes to the plan and change the assignment of three nodes that were in the plan to different schools.
Discussions in the work session removed 996 students from the plan, added 142 students and changed the assignment for 86 students. The board's action trimmed the original proposal down to 9,404.
The public hearing last night provided the opportunity for families who were in the seven nodes added to the plan and the three nodes that were moved to different schools to talk with the board. Most of the families addressed concerns about moving elementary students from Farmington Woods Elementary to Green Hope Elementary or high school students from Middle Creek High to Garner High.
The public hearing was another opportunity for community input in a process that began last fall with a series of 12 community engagement meetings. WCPSS staff posted a draft proposal in December that included 11,495 students and resulted in more than 2,000 comments from families. These comments were used to provide the board Feb. 14 a growth management plan that included 10,258 students. The board held a series of six public hearings where they heard from more than 500 speakers. Board members discussed the comments they had received and made changes to the plan in the March 8 work session.
The board will hold a second work session on the growth management plan as part of the board's committee of the whole meeting that begins today at 1 p.m. The agenda for the board's meeting at 4 this afternoon includes the final vote on the 2006-07 Growth Management Plan.
The growth management plan fills seven new schools opening for 2006-07, relieves crowding at existing schools and helps the school system respond to the tremendous increase in students. Student enrollment increased by 6,400 students this year and is expected to increase by 7,000 for 2006-07.
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