Posted: 5/7/03

Board OKís boundary changes

Cliff Buchan
News Editor

Parents who staved off a controversial boundary change a year ago wonít get a reprieve this year.

The school board on Monday voted 7-0 to approve a boundary change that will move 36 students from Wyoming Elementary to Columbus Elementary and 13 students from Columbus to Lino Lakes Elementary.

Action Monday was the concluding step to a boundary change committee study that was presented to the board this spring. The committee was in full agreement on the move of students to Lino Lakes, but asked the board to rule on the Wyoming move because no consensus could be reached within the committee.

After bending under parental pressure a year ago and not ordering the boundary change that was recommended in 2002, the board moved ahead this week and agreed to make the change.

The boardís action on Monday also adopted a committee recommendation that will eliminate double busing routes that serve all seven busing areas within the district.

Jim Mericle, committee member, said the double busing move was the top recommendation of the committee. He said the cost savings from the elimination of double busing could reach $62,500 for the first year.

As the district continues to face revenue problems and the prospects of no new state aid, member Susan Novak, who served on the boundary change committee, said the cost saving issue was significant.

Parents complain

Mondayís decision did not come without some complaints by parents who spoke to the board during its listening session and during the regular session.

Julie Coozennoy, Wyoming Township, said parents were not informed of the pending move. She questioned why parents werenít told that the change for the Wyoming area was being considered.

She also questioned if the move was being made for the right decisions. She said the move made little sense in light of the community school concept.

Coozennoy questioned the wisdom of busing kids from Wyoming to Columbus because of the impact on families and kids who have community ties to Wyoming.

But the board was ready to move forward this time.

Member Joe Grafft, another boundary change committee member, said the board granted its concession a year ago as a ìreprieveî for one year and the move would likely be made this year.

It was Grafft who a year ago made the motion to hold off on the boundary change.

Member Jody Krebs said the move at this time was a way for the district to help deal with junior high school issues in the future.

The junior high school question was a topic for the boundary change committee but no recommendation was made.

The committee explored options for equalizing enrollment at the two junior high schools but took no action.

Century Junior High now has 1000 students while Southwest houses 750 students, Mericle said.

Board member Karen Morehead said the district may have erred by moving too fast on the change proposal, but she was not willing to ignore the efforts of the volunteer boundary change committee.

Another recommendation from the committee will enable the study process to continue.

The board also voted 7-0 this week to authorize the committee to continue its study starting in the fall as requested by the committee.

A key area of study this fall will be the Forest View attendance area which continues to see growth and resulting pressure on the elementary school.

The area of Wyoming Township that is bounded by US-61, 250th St., Goodview Ave. and US-8 was the area of controversy last year when parental pressure persuaded the board to go against a recommendation of the boundary change committee to move the Wyoming students to Columbus.

The Columbus and Lino Lakes schools are both under utilized while Wyoming Elementary is near capacity. Students who are asked to move can apply for open enrollment but may face transportation costs to stay at their old school.

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