FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) — Dozens of Fort Bend ISD parents packed a meeting Monday night at district headquarters. Several voiced their concerns for the district’s proposal for rezoning elementary schools.
District officials say the primary reason behind rezoning is a decline in enrollment, and the goal is to balance it across the district.
“This is not just a Fort Bend ISD problem. It’s a statewide challenge, and it’s driven by the shifting enrollment patterns we are seeing, rising operation costs, and instructional funding issues facing every school district,” Dr. Marc Smith, the district superintendent, said.
SEE PREVIOUS REPORT: Fort Bend ISD prepares to release a proposal to close and rezone elementary schools
During the meeting, the district presented data to parents, saying that several factors have contributed to the decline, such as lower birth rates, the housing market, and the availability of other options like private and charter schools.
As part of the plan, a total of 38 schools could be impacted based on factors such as whether a school is over- or under-capacity.
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There’s a possibility that seven schools could be closed.
Eighteen campuses would see more students, and five would see fewer. One of those is Neill Elementary, where Raheel Ramzanali says he planned to send his daughter.
“Figuring out if she is going to Neill Elementary, where a lot of our friends and their kids go, or is she going to be part of an elementary school that’s going to be a different community,” Ramzanali said.
Other parents ABC13 spoke with say they don’t agree with the district’s approach, with only focusing on elementary school rezoning.
“I believe they are still not considering long-term community togetherness, so you could have rezoning in elementary and next year talk about middle school and two years down the line talk about high school,” Tressy Garcia said.
Since this is only a proposal, a vote on the plan hasn’t taken place. The board of trustees is expected to vote in March.
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