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Boundary Changes Possible

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By COURTNEY CAIRNS PASTOR, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 30, 2008

Updated: 01/28/2008 05:57 pm

CITRUS PARK - A middle school opening in Citrus Park could trigger boundary changes from Town 'N Country to Lutz.

Parents heard details of the proposal for the first time at a meeting last week at Sickles High. If the Hillsborough County school board approves the plans, more than 1,500 middle school students from four schools could be redistricted.

The largest outcry at the meeting involved 145 students the Hillsborough school district is considering shifting from Farnell Middle, near Westchase, to Webb in Town 'N Country. One mother from the Bay Crest neighborhood brought a petition signed by 40 parents protesting the move to Webb.

Families raised concerns about Webb's academic reputation. Farnell is an A school, and the state grades for Webb have bounced among B's and C's and one A. One mother said she worried the appraisal on her house would drop if the neighborhood was assigned to a lower-performing school. Several mothers said they would refuse to send their children to Webb.

Superintendent MaryEllen Elia may grandfather in current Farnell sixth- and seventh-graders, allowing them to stay there for their remaining years while the rest of the Bay Crest neighborhood makes the move to Webb. But when district official Steve Ayers raised that possibility, it only enraged the families assigned to new schools other than Webb.

"Why wouldn't my seventh-grader be allowed to finish at Martinez?" said Gayle Geagan, whose son might have to move to Walker for his final year of middle school.

The district wants to adjust attendance zones now to prepare for a new school opening in August and comply with class-size limits, said Ayers, director of community and parent relations. Several of the middle schools in northwestern Hillsborough are over capacity, Ayers said, which makes it tough to lower class sizes to the limits the state sets.

"We have to do what we can do to make sure the enrollments of these schools meet the state requirement," Ayers said.

Smith Middle, under construction behind Citrus Park Elementary, would relieve Davidsen and Walker middle schools, drawing from the eastern edge of Davidsen's boundary and the southern fringe of Walker. Moving out those students would free up space for children from other crowded schools.

The district wants to transfer 262 Farnell students into Davidsen and 122 Martinez students into Walker. Webb, meanwhile, is the only school in the bunch operating under its capacity, and it could accept students who are assigned to Farnell but live south of the Webb zone.

Michele Wagner, whose two children attend Bay Crest Elementary but would fall under the Webb zone in the future, collected signatures of neighbors against rezoning. The school has academic problems, she said.

"Not one of them will send their children to Webb," she said, holding the petition.

Many parents also questioned whether new middle school assignments would affect where students attended high school. The district has not said where Smith students will attend high school. Steinbrenner High in Lutz is opening in 2009 and could result in several boundary changes among area high schools similar to what is proposed for the middle schools this year.

Geagan has seen her Keystone neighborhood get assigned to several middle schools - from Ben Hill to Walker to Martinez and now possibly back to Walker - during the 16 years she has lived there. The area also has experienced several elementary school changes.

Most moves weren't too bad, she said, because they involved a large number of students who shifted together. But the latest Walker move would affect about 100 students, making her son feel left out of the crowd.

"It would be different if a large number of their classmates were moving," she said.

Other neighborhoods are closer to Walker, she said, and it would be more cost-efficient to send those students there, based on rising fuel expenses.

Comments from the meeting will go back to the superintendent and district staff, and Elia will make a recommendation for changes or to approve the proposals.

The school board could vote on the boundaries as early as next month.

ABOUT THE CHANGES

The middle school boundary proposals would affect several schools. Here is the breakdown:

•607 students from Davidsen to Smith

•417 students from Walker to Smith

•262 students from Farnell to Davidsen

•145 students from Farnell to Webb

•122 students from Martinez to Walker

Source: Hillsborough County School District

Reporter Courtney Cairns Pastor can be reached at (813) 865-1503 or cpastor@tampatrib.com.

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