Redistricting School Boundaries
Why is District 95 Changing School Boundaries?
Over time, communities may have more student population growth in one part of the community than another which can lead to an imbalance of students enrolled in the district schools. This can lead to overcrowding at some schools and underutilization of space at others. As part of the District 95 strategic plan, Forward 95, action plan 4C 19B was established to “develop and implement a district enrollment map that enrolls students in schools according to criteria maximizing student and family engagement, student learning, and fiscal responsibility.”
In accordance with the Forward 95 strategic plan, the district is embarking on a redistricting project during the 2020-21 school year. The implementation of the new boundaries will coincide with the opening of a new May Whitney Elementary School in Fall 2021, replacing the old May Whitney School on the same grounds at 100 Church Street.
- Approved New School Boundaries Effective for 2021-22 School Year
- December 10th, 2020 Boundary Meeting
- Advisory Boundary Committee
- Boundary Committee Meeting Dates, Presentations, and Recordings
- Boundary Community Input Sessions
- Boundary Committee Meeting Documents
- Frequently Asked Questions
Approved New School Boundaries Effective for 2021-22 School Year
NEW SCHOOL BOUNDARIES FOR NEXT SCHOOL YEAR
After months of meetings, community feedback, and work with national boundary consultants RSP & Associates, the Boundary Advisory Committee sent two plans to the Board of Education in early January. At the Jan. 28th, 2021 meeting, the Board of Education adopted the committee’s preferred revised boundary plans (effective beginning NEXT school year) along with grandfathering options:
- Families impacted by the boundary changes will be directly contacted by the district.
- For those living in areas impacted by the boundary changes the following grandfathering options will be offered:
- Current year 4th graders (next year’s 5th grade) may remain at their current school for the final year of elementary school. Transportation will be provided by the district. PLEASE NOTE: SIBLINGS IN OTHER GRADE LEVELS ARE NOT GRANDFATHERED.
- Current year 6th and 7th graders (next year’s 7th and 8th grade) may remain at their current school for the remainder of middle school. Transportation will be provided by the district.
- Families with students who have the option to exercise grandfathering options will be contacted directly by the schools to determine whether they wish to exercise these grandfathering options.
- For information about the regular process for requesting other attendance exceptions, please visit the Boundary Map & Attendance Exceptions webpage by selecting District->Boundary Map & Attendance Exceptions, then click on the Attendance Exceptions tab.
For more information about the process leading to the new boundary adoption, visit the other sections on this Redistricting School Boundaries webpage.
December 10th, 2020 Boundary Meeting
December 10th meeting, 6:00 p.m., via Zoom webinar
Please click the link below to view the recording of the December 10th meeting. Discussion items for the meeting were described in the communication below.
Communication sent to all District 95 families on 12/4/20:
(Includes Impacted Subdivisions and Maps)
Dear District 95 Families,
In recent months we have been communicating with you about the Advisory Boundary Committee meetings and opportunity for input as the district proceeds with redistricting school boundaries, as outlined in our strategic plan, Forward 95. Through the work of the Advisory Boundary Committee in conjunction with professional consultants RSP & Associates, there were four options reviewed at the last meeting. One of the maps, the Feedback Option did not receive support from the committee. The Boundary Committee has an additional meeting scheduled for December 10th to consider the three remaining maps. Throughout the process the Boundary Committee and RSP have invited and listened to the feedback from the community in order to identify the best options to meet the objectives defined by the Board of Education. The most recent options impact some different subdivisions/areas than previous options, so it is important that everyone review the maps and options. Please review the table below which highlights the areas that will be impacted by each option.
Map 1A Revised |
Map 1B Revised |
Map 1B Modified |
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Brierwood Estates (New undeveloped portion only) |
Acorn Acres/Brierwood Estates |
August Lane Area |
Forest Lake |
Forest Lake |
Brierwood Estates (New undeveloped portion only) |
Gabriel Court / Sacamano Lane |
Hunter’s Creek |
Forest Lake |
Meadow Wood Townhomes |
Meadow Wood Townhomes |
Hunter’s Creek |
Pine Valley / Pine Lake Circle |
Pine Valley / Pine Lake Circle |
Meadow Wood Townhomes |
Sanctuary Club |
Sanctuary Club |
Mohawk Trail Area |
Shagbark Lane |
Wentworth of Kildeer |
Pine Valley/Pine Lake Circle |
Sycamore Drive / Mark Lane / N. Echo Lake Drive (portion) |
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Sanctuary Club |
Westberry Court |
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Valentine Manor |
Avery Ridge |
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Wentworth of Kildeer |
Feedback can be submitted to the Boundary Committee through email or through virtual public comment at the next meeting on Dec. 10th. Email feedback may be sent to Vicky.Cullinan@lz95.org.
We encourage everyone to watch the Dec. 10 Boundary Advisory Committee Meeting. To watch or to provide public comment at the meeting, click here for instructions on the Redistricting School Boundaries webpage. This webpage also contains information about the redistricting process, objectives, past meetings, and more.
Sincerely,
Dr. Kelley Gallt
Superintendent
Advisory Boundary Committee
Advisory Boundary Committee
In September, 2020, the Department of Business and Operations sought local community members or parents/guardians of elementary or middle school students who reside within District 95’s attendance areas to serve on this Board committee.
Objective of the Committee
The objective of the Boundary Committee is to create one to three different plans that meet the objectives of the Board in realigning school enrollment. Recommended boundary plans will include preparation for the removal of mobile classrooms currently on the property of Spencer Loomis Elementary School, as well as the elimination of the need for additional classrooms captured at Middle School North to support Spencer Loomis. The plans will also incorporate the opening of the district’s new May Whitney Elementary School, which has been designed to support a larger number of elementary students and/or specialized programming for identified students. Finally, recommended adjustments will also include middle school attendance areas as the current enrollments at that level are also unbalanced. A final recommendation is planned to take effect to start the 2021-22 school year when the new May Whitney Elementary School is scheduled to open.
Committee Members
Committee membership was limited. Volunteers were solicited and selection preference was be given to local community members and parents/guardians who have students attending an elementary school and/or middle school. The committee consists of district administrators as well as one community member or parent/guardian from each school except the high school.
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Third Party Facilitation
The district has partnered with a third party, RSP & Associates, to facilitate the work of the committee. The duties of committee members will include evaluating student enrollment, demographic information, bus transportation, and real estate data, in order to prepare well-informed elementary and middle school boundary recommendations for the School Board’s consideration.
Boundary Committee meetings have been scheduled for September 17, October 1, and November 19th at 6:00 p.m. In addition to its regular meetings, the Boundary Committee will also attend two Community Input Sessions where the general public is asked to review the committee’s boundary proposals and to provide feedback on each plan’s perceived strengths and weaknesses. These input sessions are scheduled for October 13th and October 14th at 7:00 p.m.
Boundary Committee Meeting Dates, Presentations, and Recordings
Boundary Committee Meetings
Boundary committee meetings were held on September 17, October 1, and November 19; information about each meeting can be found below. Please note, boundary committee meetings are open to the public.
**An additional meeting has been added on December 10th at 6:00 p.m.** For details on how to watch the meeting and options being explored, see the section above titled "December 10th , 2020 Boundary Meeting".
The November 19th presentation can be viewed by clicking here.
The October 1st meeting was recorded and can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/OoK5DOMBtDo.
Public Input Sessions
In addition, two public input sessions were held virtually for parent/community members on October 13th and 14th. Recordings of these meetings are available on our website through the links below:
October 13th Community Input Session - Livestream Recording
October 14th Community Input Session - Livestream Recording
Final Plan
A final redistricting plan is planned to be presented to the Board of Education by the end of January 2021. Implementation of the plan is expected for the start of the 2021-22 School Year.
Boundary Community Input Sessions
Recording of Community Input Sessions
District 95 conducted two virtual Boundary Community Input Sessions to gather feedback on draft boundary options for the redistricting that will be adopted for the 2021-22 school year. The Boundary Community Input Sessions included a live presentation by Rob Schwarz of RSP & Associates, the third-party firm that is facilitating the process. Both sessions were recorded and can be accessed on our website from the following links:
October 13th Community Input Session - Livestream Recording
October 14th Community Input Session - Livestream Recording
Boundary Map Options Presented for Feedback (these are NOT finalized)
Feedback
Feedback on the two draft boundary map options presented by RSP & Associates was gathered in October through a tool called ThoughtExchange. There were 292 participants who provided 226 Thoughts, and 11,327 Ratings through Thought Exchange.
The feedback from Thought Exchange will be shared with the Advisory Boundary Committee at the next boundary meeting on November 19th. The committee will consider the community input and will continue its work with RSP and Associates to develop its recommendation to the Board of Education in January. This may include considering changes to the draft maps shared at the community input sessions.
Boundary Committee Meeting Documents
Frequently Asked Questions
Will my family be impacted by the district’s redistricting plans (boundary map changes)?
In accordance with the action plans defined by the District 95 strategic plan, Forward 95, the district is embarking on a redistricting project during the 2020-21 school year. The implementation of the new boundaries will coincide with the opening of a new May Whitney Elementary School in Fall 2021, replacing the old May Whitney School on the same grounds at 100 Church Street.
Until the boundary project is completed, we are unable to determine any potential school changes to residents, however attendance boundaries at all of our elementary and middle schools may be impacted by these changes.
Why is the district planning to redistrict?
Over time, communities may have more student population growth in one part of the community than another which can lead to an imbalance of students enrolled in the district schools. This can lead to overcrowding at some schools and underutilization of space at others. As part of the Forward 95 strategic plan, Action Plan 4C 19B was established to “develop and implement a district enrollment map that enrolls students in schools according to criteria maximizing student and family engagement, student learning, and fiscal responsibility.” The rationale for action is to balance enrollment across the district schools relative to their respective capacities to ensure equitable learning outcomes, long term sustainability of physical resources, and greater fiscal responsibility.
How will the redistricting process work?
To assist in the redistricting efforts, the Board has engaged the services of RSP & Associates. RSP & Associates will complete both the 1) Enrollment Analysis and Student Projects, and 2) Boundary Analysis as well as the public facilitation.