Deputy Superintendent Greg Bradley presented two proposed boundary changes to the board Nov. 13. The presentation was for information only, and no action was taken by the board.
The overview
Two new schools—the district’s 18th elementary school and fifth middle school—are opening in August, creating a change in attendance boundaries.
Major changes to the zoning will be done in the southern portion of PISD, Bradley said. The affected schools include:
- Spradley Elementary School
- Hays Middle School
- Rogers Middle School
How we got here
Spradley Elementary is “extremely” overcrowded, Bradley said. If the district did not remove students from the school, then he said enrollment would be close to or over 1,200 students in the next school year.
In the 2023-24 school year, the district closed enrollment to Spradley and spread students among Furr, Hughes, Folsom and Rucker elementary schools. Those schools are then being overcrowded from the overflow of students from Spradley Elementary, he said.
“We desperately need another elementary south of [US] 380,” Bradley said.
Sorting out details
Betty Jackson Elementary School is opening in the south side of the district near Rock Hill High School and north of Hays Middle School. With the proposed zoning for Jackson Elementary, Spradley Elementary would be responsible for a smaller zone with closer to 700 students, Bradley said. Jackson Elementary would then open with 500-600 students, he said.
The district’s middle schools feel the most pressure in student count as all four schools are overcrowded, Bradley said.
Daniel L. Jones Middle School is opening on the south side of the district near Rock Hill High.
Splitting the feeder schools because of the new campus would reduce Hays Middle's enrollment from over 1,900 to around 1,100, Bradley said. This removes some students from Rogers Middle School, which currently has a student population of over 1,750 students, he said.
Jones Middle would then open with around 1,100-1,200 students, he said.
Hays Middle currently has five feeder elementary schools, including Hughes, Baker, Reeves, Spradley and Furr. The five schools, plus Jackson Elementary, would be split between Jones Middle and Hays Middle, Bradley said.
Jones Middle’s feeder schools would include:
- Hughes Elementary
- Baker Elementary
- Reeves Elementary
- Jackson Elementary
- Spradley Elementary
- Furr Elementary
The district will host community meetings to get feedback on the proposed changes, Bradley said. The meetings will be held at:
- Spradley Elementary School, Nov. 29 from 6-7 p.m.
- Hays Middle School, Nov. 30 from 6-7 p.m.
After gathering feedback from residents, he said a recommendation for zoning changes will be brought to the board at its December meeting.
