money As rezoning comes to Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools, some families have options
Some families will have options when it comes to where they send their students as rezoning discussions continue for the Clarksville-Montgomery County School System.
Officials say new rezoning boundaries are coming as the population continues to grow at CMCSS. To curb overcrowding, Kirkwood Middle School will open in August with plans for a Kirkwood High School to open in August 2023 and a proposed elementary school to open in August 2025.
During Tuesday's formal board meeting, Robert Schwarz, CEO of RSP and Associates, the Kansas-based firm tasked with providing the district's rezoning plan, said a sixth grade student going into the seventh grade for the 2022-2023 school year would have the option to attend his or her current school or a new school under the rezoning proposal.
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Seventh graders rising to the eight grade would also have the same option, Schwarz said.
The biggest change for families, Schwarz said, is that any student who chooses to stay in his or her current school would have to provide his or her own transportation to and from that school.
Once the new Kirkwood High School opens, Schwarz said a similar option will arise for students entering their sophomore year during in 2022-2023.
When those students reach high school in the 2024-2025 school year, there will not be a second choice opportunity to attend their old boundary high school, Schwarz said.
"Student option or grandfathering will further reduce the number of students that are impacted based on the parent choice for their students," Schwarz explained.
Norm Brumby, chief operating officer for CMCSS, told board members the district will continue working on a strategic plan for transportation of students through the new proposal.
The need for a rezoning has become apparent as the City of Clarksville and Montgomery County continues to grow. Each year, the school district adds about 677 new students. Lately, additions have been closer to 1,000 new students, Brumby said.
West Creek and Rossview are among the zones in need of population relief, Schwarz said, noting that there are about 630 students in the West Creek zone and 620 in the Rossview zone that need to be removed to help with the district's capacity issues.
Though rezoning is never perfect, Schwarz said future growth will only cause more issues with overcrowding.
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In the meantime, Brumby said the district will continue using portable classrooms to meet student demand.
And future plans for new school buildings will continue being a priority as the district could see a student population growth to 42,633 by the 2026-2027 school year.
Reach reporter Craig Shoup at 419-559-7582 or by email at cshoup@gannett.com and on Twitter @Craig_Shoup. To support his work, sign up for a digital subscription to TheLeafChronicle.com.
This article originally appeared on Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle: Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools rezoning: Families have options
