Overview of High School Boundaries from Director Eden Mack

 I wrote to Director Mack simply asking her to clarify my understanding of the two scenarios the Board suggested at last night's meeting.  Here is her reply:

Thanks for your question this morning asking for clarification on the scenarios requested at last nights board meeting for the changes to high school boundaries and pathways for 2019-20 and the opening of Lincoln High School.  We are getting lots of e-mails with confusion about where we are in the process and what exactly is being considered at this time. This is completely understandable because the timeline for introduction to the board and action by the board has shifted from the original expectation, and the maps and data that match the scenarios requested last night are not yet ready.  

First, for clarification here is the current timeline of the decision making process:

• Board discussion to clarify specific scenarios to be considered:  January 3rd (board meeting video on line)
• Board Operations Committee discussion of plan for January 10th work session:  January 4th 4:30, board conference room, John Stanford Center
• High School Boundary Task Force (a Superintendent Task Force) discussion of Board specified scenarios (and hopefully maps and data):  January 5th,12 to 2 pm, Conference Room 2750 at the John Stanford Center
• Board Work Session with expected presentation of scenarios with maps and data:  January 10th, 4:30 in John Stanford auditorium
• Introduction of the preferred scenario to the Board:  January 17th, 4:15 (start of meeting)  John Stanford auditorium
• Board action:  January 31st, 
  
  

Each of these meetings mentioned above are open public meetings, though only the school board meetings on January 17th and 31st are filmed and have time allotted for public comment.

As you know, boundary processes are complicated and we are moving quickly at this stage to have a decision in place by open enrollment this year. There are many factors that need to be balanced. 

As a reminder to you and your readers, the board guidance in policy in the 2009 Student Assignment Plan, Section III, pages 10-11:

"The process of developing attendance area boundaries requires balancing various factors. Factors to be considered in the development of attendance area boundaries include those shown below. Data on factors such as these contribute to the determination of where attendance area boundary lines are located. These factors are not weighted, since multiple factors must be balanced.

· Proximity of students to schools

· Safe walk zones

· Efficiency of school bus routing (elementary and middle school boundaries)

· Metro transportation routes (high school boundaries)

· Demographics, including anticipated changes in enrollment

· Opportunities for creating diversity within boundaries

· Physical barriers (water, etc.)

· Balanced target enrollment for each middle school and its feeder elementary schools to create predictable feeder patterns from elementary to middle school

· Availability of Open Choice seats at all attendance area high schools for students from other attendance areas to enroll through school choice

Each attendance area boundary is an intact geographic area; there are no non-contiguous geographic areas comprising an individual attendance area boundary. Each attendance area boundary line abuts the boundary line of adjacent attendance areas. This results in every address in the District being included in an elementary school boundary, a middle school boundary, and a high school boundary.

Additionally, the impact of various Pathways (Dual Language and Highly Capable, for example) on the enrollment projections at each school need to be balanced when drawing boundaries. This is why the board is considering both high school boundaries and pathways together.

At last night's meeting the board had discussion to clarify that the two boundary and HC Pathway scenarios that we want to see maps and data for at the January 10th work session.  The high school boundaries need to be balanced considering the above factors, and adjusted for appropriate enrollment capacity.  At the moment, we have multiple high schools (including Garfield, Roosevelt and Ballard) that are projected to be far over their capacity and the boundaries and pathways need to be set such that we have reasonable assurance that enrollment capacity will be balanced when Lincoln opens and beyond. 

The scenarios that were requested from the board last night to have "optimized" boundary maps which balance enrollment and all of the factor listed above as well as considering existing community feedback are:

1. "Localized HC” providing HC services in all attendance area high schools starting in 2021. Transition pathways for HC in 2019 and 2020 requested are Garfield (HC Students from the South), Lincoln (HC students from the North), and West Seattle (HC students from West Seattle), with Ingraham IBX continuing as an HC Optional site.

2. “Regional Pathways” which increase the number of HC pathways to provide regional access across the city. The pathways for HC in 2019 would become Garfield (HC Students from the South), Lincoln (HC students from the North), and West Seattle (HC students from West Seattle) with Ingraham IBX continuing as an HC Optional site.

Essentially the first is drawing boundaries with the expectation that in 2021 HC students would start being assigned to their neighborhood school and pathways would be dissolved, with grandfathering of current 2021 students expected.   

The second is drawing boundaries expecting that there would be 3 pathway sites indefinitely.  The HC pathway sites are the same, though.


I have faith that we can determine reasonable boundaries that create the least amount of disruption and balance enrollment with a scenario that will respond to the majority of the concerns and comments raised thus far, and that we can open Lincoln strong in 2019.  It is really exciting that we will be opening a new high school for the first time in decades.  


I would encourage all who are interested to attend the work session on January 10th, and/or find the material on the website.  And continue to write the board with comments, thoughts and questions.  Thanks you for your engagement in supporting Seattle's students and families!