Politics & Government

Committee Recommends No Changes to School Boundaries

After an hour-and-a-half meeting, the advisory committee tasked with discussing possibly shifting the school boundaries for the San Bruno Park School District decided to make a recommendation of keeping things status quo.

Finally, a decision has been made. 

As it turns out, nothing changes. That’s what the advisory committee tasked with discussing the possibility of shifting school boundaries for the San Bruno Park School District decided Tuesday night—that the school district should not change school boundaries or the district’s policy on student transfers. 

The issue has when sixth graders move to next year. About 280 students and their teachers are expected to be added to the city’s only public middle school. That, in turn, will mean the seven elementary schools will have fewer students. 

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In the end, the advisory committee’s recommendation is just that—a recommendation. The school board is expected to take action on the issue at its , and that action could determine how much more gets discussed about changing school boundaries. 

While it is not clear whether the controversy over possible school boundary changes will subside, one thing was clear after Tuesday’s meeting: people are still confused about the issue. 

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Parents spent more than an hour at the meeting, held at Allen Elementary, raising questions about the proposed school boundary changes. 

Most people said they had no idea the district was thinking about changing anything at their children’s schools. Some questioned the district’s motives for proposing the changes. Others said the district was focusing on the wrong problem. 

The purpose of Tuesday’s meeting was to choose between two options to recommend to the board: Don’t change school boundaries or the district’s transfer policies or change the boundaries but keep the transfer policies the same. 

Former school board member Chris Kiely said that, with so many students transferring out of the school district every year—more than 200—the district should be focusing on how to keep San Bruno students in San Bruno Park schools rather than worrying about how to make sure each school has the same number of students. 

“I think the attendance policy is what the board needs to look at,” Kiely told the advisory committee, “not changing boundaries around.” 

Rollingwood Elementary parent Maggie Kelly-Lieras said she and many other parents left the meeting more confused than before they arrived. She said the district didn’t properly communicate with parents when the issue of changing school boundaries first came up last school year. 

Now, she said, it seems like the district is trying to rush to fix a problem that doesn’t even exist yet because the sixth graders aren’t at Parkside. Once the students are there, she feels that a better decision could be made. 

“I’m hoping that going forward there will be more communication so parents can be informed,” Kelly-Lieras said.

The San Bruno Park School District board will meet next at 7 p.m. on Dec. 14 at Crestmoor Elementary. The meeting will be televised on San Bruno Cable TV.


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