Parkway Schools Poised for Boundary Shift

Results from a parent survey are in. Parents in the north and central areas of the district the district uses to set attendance areas. Parkway is in the fall.

Overcrowding at schools in the north part of the district, specifically  and Craig elementary schools, has prompted the potential changes. Elementary school students from the north part of the district could be moved to elementary schools in the central part of the district, such as  in Chesterfield. Any changes made in elementary school attendance boundaries could impact where a student goes to middle or high school, too. 

For the most part, results of the parent survey are similar to what school district officials expected, school district spokesman Paul Tandy said. Parents in the north part of the district recognize that their child's school is crowded and have slightly different priorities than parents in the central part of the district. Parents in the central part of the district say their schools have just the right amount of students and are more likely to support the "neighborhood school" concept—the idea that kids should attend schools that are close to home.

About 20 percent of parents in the north and central areas of the district, or 1,361 parents, responded to the survey. Tandy said in an ideal world that percentage would be higher, but it's enough to validate the results. 

"Twenty percent is not ideal, but it is a good number. It's almost 1,400 households. It's good for a general dipstick reaction for the community," Tandy said. "You could argue that (the respondents) are the ones that are most interested."

Most of the parents who took the survey, 762, had children in the north attendance area. Almost 1,100 had at least one student in elementary school.

Parents ranked the importance of the districts' guidelines to set school attendance areas, but there wasn't an overwhelmingly clear winner. On a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being "extremely important," all nine guidelines were considered to be about a 4, or "very important."

Guideline

Average

To consider the safety factor of students on the way to school.

4.54

To avoid moving a child to another school for one year only.

4.52

To support and further the “neighborhood school” concept on all levels so long as the design capacity of a given school can both educationally and physically furnish a quality program.

4.28

To enable each student, insofar as possible, to attend the school nearest his home.

4.24

To favor students presently enrolled in Parkway schools over prospective new students.

4.20

To change as few students as possible from schools they are now attending.

4.15

To coordinate attendance areas of elementary and secondary schools.

4.03

To assign, when practical, all students of a subdivision to one school.

4.01

To equalize the load as nearly as possible in each building according to facilities available.

3.92

Tandy said those results indicate the district has good guidelines in place.

"It validates in my mind the fact that you've got good criteria in place. Even the lowest is 3.92. No one is saying 'This is stupid; this is bad criteria,' " Tandy said.

Parents ranked those guidelines again, indicating which three were the most important. The two guidelines that came out on top were to avoid moving a child to another school for one year only and to keep neighborhood schools. From there, things get a little murky; only 1.8 percentage points separate the next three guidelines:

Parent Responses — Three Most Important Guidelines 

Proportion Marking

To avoid moving a child to another school for one year only.

47.8%

To support and further the “neighborhood school” concept on all levels so long as the design capacity of a given school can both educationally and physically furnish a quality program.

46.1%

To coordinate attendance areas of elementary and secondary schools.

36.6%

To change as few students as possible from schools they are now attending.

36.1%

To favor students presently enrolled in Parkway schools over prospective new students.

34.8%

To enable each student, insofar as possible, to attend the school nearest his home.

30.9%

To consider the safety factor of students on the way to school.

28.2%

To equalize the load as nearly as possible in each building according to facilities available.

19.5%

To assign, when practical, all students of a subdivision to one school.

15.6% 

Parents in the north area of the district answered that question different than parents in the central area of the district, according to a report on the results.

Parents in the north area said the neighborhood school concept was less important to them, and were more likely to place importance on equalizing the number of students in each building compared to their counter parts in the central area. North area parents were also less likely to answer that it was important to assign students in a subdivision to a school. They also said it was less important to change as few students as possible from their current schools as the district adjusts the attendance area boundaries.

"I think that's important. It suggests that they understand that there are a few schools in the north area that have disproportionally high enrollment, which is causing challenges," Tandy said. They support neighborhood schools, he said, but they also recognize that for every student to have equal opportunities, schools' enrollment must be about equal.

"That may mean that you're not as close to your old school as you are to the new school," Tandy said. The district will still work to maintain neighborhood schools, though, as many parents indicated it was important.

North area parents were also less likely to answer that it was important to assign students in one subdivision to one school. They also said it was less important to change as few students as possible from their current schools as the district adjusts the attendance area boundaries.

But Tandy said the district isn't talking about massive changes.

"We're looking to change as few students as possible," he said. "We really don't have overcrowding everywhere, just in certain pockets." The school board, he said, is likely to only move kids if they have to. "These are surgical changes to try to balance out enrollments around the schools," Tandy said. 

Tandy said the parents' ranking of the guidelines will factor heavily into any recommendation staff makes to the school board.

"It's helpful to us, because when we come down to making a decision, we're falling back on those and asking, 'Does this match up with what they said was most important or not?' " he said. "If it doesn't, we'd have to have a very good reason for doing that."

North area parents were also more likely to say their child's school was crowded. More than a third of north area parents who took the survey said there were "too many to way too many" students in their school. More than 90 percent of Central area parents said their school was just the right size.

The district has indicated that  and Craig elementary schools are of particular concern. Those schools have about 550 and 440 students, respectively. Most district elementary schools have closer to 400 students or less, data from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education stated.

Parents of McKelvey and Craig students agree that their schools are crowded, results indicate.

School

Too few to way too few students

Just the right number of students

Too many to way too many students

Craig

0%

38.7%

61.3%

McKelvey

0%

49.1%

51.0%

Ross

0.9%

76.9%

22.3%

Bellerive

0%

80%

20.1%

"There's a significant number of parents in the north area who see it, feel it, understand it," Tandy said. "Now, they may not agree with changing boundaries because that's hard."

Tandy said staff would work through the summer to have an initial proposal of boundary adjustments ready when the school year begins. Then there will be a series of public meetings to present the plan to parents before the school board votes on it.

"We want to give as many opportunities as possible for people to give input on it," Tandy said. "We'll tweak it based on the input. If we're hearing it's off the mark, we're prepared to recommend to the board that we make adjustments."

Tandy said he hoped the changes, which would take affect in the 2012-2013 school year, are approved before kindergarten enrollment begins in January and the district begins to move staff to the schools where they are needed in the spring.