FBISD FAVORS ZONING OPTION THAT KEEPS ALL NEW TERRITORY STUDENTS AT SARTARTIA MS
It was good news at an FBISD workshop last night for New Territory residents who have been lobbying the board for a new rezoning plan that would allow students on the west side of Hwy. 99 to stay at Sartartia rather than being bused to Middle School 14 on Harlem Road next year when it opens. Although they did not take a formal vote, the board agreed they were “in consensus” to adopt the 4C edited option that keeps all New Territory students at Sartartia Middle School. 4C Edited also keeps Telfair at Sartartia and zones Pecan Grove, Waterside Estates, Fieldstone, Waterview, Aliana, Chelsea Harbour and the apartments on FM 1464 to Middle School 14.
“Are we of the consensus that 4C edited is something we are all comfortable with?” asked Board President Sonal Buchar at the November 30 workshop. “Yes”, they all replied. Parents in the audience were surprised but pleased by the statement. “We are cautiously optimistic and think it’s a positive sign that the board has provided guidance to the administration to move forward with 4C edited. We need to keep the pressure up in a positive way,” commented Jon Sturgis who has been leading the New Territory effort in objecting to a previously presented option that divides the community by sending students on the west side of Hwy. 99 to Middle School 14.
The 2.5 hour workshop started with a prologue by Buchar about the financial cuts the board will have to make next year in the face of a $6 billion deficit in the state’s education budget. Depending on the budget adopted by the Texas Legislature next year, FBISD would receive $15 to $27 million less from the state, said Buchar. “We will be faced with passing a budget where there is a deficit,” she said. “When we look at zoning….the board is trying very hard to not break up communities. You have to understand that’s the framework we are operating in. We may have to look at cutting programs and we don’t want to do that. We just became a Recognized District and we are very proud of that. These are not random, malicious lines we are drawing, “ she said of the zoning process.
“Education is not the priority for the State Legislator. They already said Redistricting is their priority and that has nothing to do with children,” said Trustee Marilyn Glover. “We need to look at what we are going to do, facing severe cuts.”
Not only does this mean that the district may not be able to move forward with the construction of new schools, like Middle School 15 in Rosaharon that was approved in the 2007 bond referendum, it also means closing schools, according to board discussions. “Middle School 15 cannot be a reality” for the forseeable future, said Buchar. “Not until the Texas Legislators pass a balanced budget and impose their cuts on us and we see what we are left with,” she said. Middle School 15 is necessary to alleviate severe overcrowding of Baines Middle School in the Sienna Plantation area. The 4C edited plan sends a portion of Sienna Plantation to First Colony Middle School. Superintendent Tim Jenney took the opportunity during the workshop to remind the public that the district planned for growth in this area with the construction of Middle School 15 but the economic downturn and loss of state revenue does not leave them with enough funds to open the school. “We could build it but we can’t operate it,” he said, noting that middle schools cost about $1.5 million a year to run.
The board also discussed closing Colony Bend Elementary School in First Colony which has low enrollment and rezoning students to either Highlands or Commonwealth Elementary Schools. Eliminating one elementary school campus will save the district about $750,000 a year, said Ben Copeland who is the district’s Chief Auxiliary Officer.
Additionally, they may dissolve either McAuliffe Middle or Willowridge High School. In lieu of closing McAuliffe Middle, they could make it into a Technical Education Center or Administrative building for the district, said Copeland.
If they close Willowridge High School, they would send those students to Marshall High School which has the capacity to absorb extra students, said Copeland. Then, they would also have to add a grade level to Missouri City and McAuliffe Middle Schools. Currently, these campuses are only 7th and 8th grades but they would add 9th grades, he said.
Those campuses were housing just two grade levels as a way to reduce class sizes and provide more instructional support to the students who were not performing well, said Superintendent of Middle Schools, Lance Hindt. Scores on recent standardized tests have improved, indicating a positive result, he noted.
“When you have schools that have capacities for 1227 and they are under enrolled by 500 students, it’s time to make some tough decisions and cost is going to be a prevailing factor,” said Glover. “We need to take some bold steps…” she said.
The next workshop will be on December 13, before the regular board meeting. Public Input sessions regarding the recommended zoning options will follow – probably in January, said Jenney. The board will vote on the zoning plans in either their second meeting of January or in February, he said.
