The adoption of the new plan stemmed from Magnolia Elementary being above 95% capacity for the last several years. The campus was projected to be above 100% capacity for upcoming school years—including in 2022-23—had the new boundaries not been adopted, according to agenda documents.
“This is not an easy decision,” Assistant Superintendent for Support Services Larry Berger said. “I understand that I am looking at numbers holistically, but you care about your kid and so do we. This impacts the individual kid, and so I do not take it lightly.”
The four rezonings approved by the board of trustees include shifting students in the St. Andrews Apartments and Southwind at Silver Lakes Apartments, who currently attend Massey Ranch Elementary to Silverlake Elementary next year. Additionally, their feeder pattern will now be Rogers Middle School, to Berry Miller Junior High School and lastly to Dawson High School.
The second rezoning was that of a new residential area bordered by Pearland Parkway, Barry Rose Road and Brighton Brook Lane that has yet to break ground but is expected to add 57 residential homes and potentially 91 students to the area, according to agenda documents. That residential area changed its zoning from Cockrell Elementary to C.J. Harris Elementary.
A third rezoning was a residential area south of Bailey Road that accounts for 92 students, who will be rezoned from Magnolia Elementary to Massey Ranch Elementary. Twenty students who will be fourth graders in the 2022-23 school year will be eligible to remain at Magnolia Elementary if their parents choose to do so. Younger siblings will have to attend the new campus they are zoned to, according to agenda documents.
Lastly, the board of trustees also approved the rezoning of an area bordered by Fite, McClean, Magnolia and Wagon Trail roads that affects more than 30 students. These students will be rezoned from Magnolia Elementary to H.C. Carleston Elementary.
The board of trustees opted not to rezone two subdivisions—Ashton Park and Park Village Estates—that were part of Berger's original presentation. Berger said this could have added a strain to the special education student population at Massey Ranch as well as a potential negative impact on dual language programs.
With the rezonings approved, the board of trustees was able to reduce Magnolia Elementary’s capacity to between 92% and 96%, Berger said.
“We have lower enrollment, we have more 12th graders graduating than we have kindergarteners coming in,” board Vice President Jeff Barry said. “We have a wave within our current enrollment. I am perfectly fine with going 96% of Magnolia [capacity] and taking the chance. ... Why not ease the burden as much as we can with this particular proposal?”
