The Saline Reporter
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District changes boundaries
Boundary change will address inequities in class size
By Brian Cox, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: February 1, 2007
An estimated 29 Saline elementary students will switch schools next year because of a change in the district's attendance boundaries.
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District administrators announced the boundary change in a Jan. 17 letter mailed to parents living in the effected neighborhoods whose children will be reassigned from Harvest to Woodland Meadows Elementary next fall.
The change was necessitated by residential growth in Pittsfield Township that "outpaced the development in other parts of our school district," Deputy Superintendent Nancy Brenton wrote.
As a result, she wrote, Harvest has experienced greater building growth and higher class sizes in some grades than Pleasant Ridge and Woodland Meadows.
Class sizes at Harvest were in the 28 to 29 range, while at Woodland Meadows classes came in at around 23 or 24, said Woodland Meadows Principal David Raft, who was Harvest's original principal before transferring this year to Woodland Meadows. Enrollment at Woodland Meadows was down 40 students this year, he said.
The attendance boundaries were established in 2002 when Harvest opened, expanding the district from two elementary schools to three.
Brenton said redrawing the boundary lines is a cost-savings measure and will help even out the distribution of students.
Parents of kids reassigned to Woodland Meadows Elementary attended an informational meeting Tuesday night in the school's media center with principals David Raft, Les Sharon, Jesse Stevenson and Brenton. A second meeting is planned for 9:30 a.m. Thursday.
The response to the change has been largely positive, Raft said.
"We've heard nothing negative," he said. "The good thing is that I worked with a lot of these families when I was at Harvest."
Brenton said administrators were aware the transition for the younger kids could be difficult and planned to mitigate apprehension as much as possible.
Special transition activities are planned for students, and the kids may visit their new school in the spring when building tours will be offered and meet with teachers and other staff.
"Any time you make changes, it's hard," said Raft, "but kids are pretty resilient."
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