What happened?
In anticipation of the opening of Gus Almquist Middle School this fall, HISD trustees approved a staff recommendation for rezoning middle school attendance boundaries during a Jan. 25 board meeting.
District staff recommended Option 2, which Henry Gideon, HISD's assistant superintendent of operations, said maintains better balance of capacity across the three middle schools through the 2028-29 school year.
"We're not splitting any attendance zones as far as elementary students that would be in the same cohort rising," Gideon said of the second option. "This balance is even better in terms of a rate of growth."
The details
Feeder patterns for the middle schools under the rezoning will be as follows, per a presentation from the district:
- Gus Almquist Middle School: All students currently zoned for Kerley, Veteran's Hill and Howard Norman elementary schools
- Farley Middle School: Rising fifth through seventh graders currently zoned to Hutto Middle School, and those who live south of Hwy. 79 and adjacent to FM 1660, including in the North Creek Bend, Cross Creek, Cotton Brook communities, as well as portions of Legends of Hutto
- All other students will be zoned for Hutto Middle School.
Trustees also chose to adjust the attendance zone for Howard Norman Elementary to include the Covered Bridge development.
They also elected to grandfather rising fifth and seventh graders at their current campuses through its existing transfer process. The exemption would also allow siblings of rising students in fifth to sixth grade to qualify, to avoid splitting up family members who attend the same campus. Parents will be responsible for transporting students who remain at their current campuses next year.
