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Frisco ISD welcomed families September 24 for a conversation about the rezoning process for four new schools opening in fall 2016.
The public forum was designed to engage parents and students early in the process so that families know what to expect and when. Although rezoning occurs annually in Frisco ISD, many may be unaware of the frequency or considerations involved.
“We wanted to take a proactive approach in reaching out to families to help them understand the process and how they can be involved,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Jeremy Lyon. “Rezoning is always difficult, but due to unprecedented growth, we have a lot of experience with it in Frisco ISD.”
FISD officials shared the rezoning timeline and explained opportunities for families to provide input and feedback regarding the draft attendance zones, which will be presented for the first time at the regular School Board meeting on October 19.
At the November regular meeting of the Board, there will be a time for public input regarding the proposals, with a final decision to be made at the December meeting.
Schools opening in August 2016 include:
The event also highlighted the need for rezoning, given the District’s fast growth and commitment to smaller schools. FISD has long prided itself on smaller high schools, which provide more opportunities for students to get involved in activities and enhance educators’ abilities to build personal relationships and know the name and need of every student.
Dr. Lyon shared updated data from external demographer PASA, which shows the rate at which Frisco ISD is growing relative to its neighbors, as well as a comparison of STAAR test results from the largest school districts in the state.
In the past 20 years, FISD has built 60 schools and grown by more than 50,000 students. Average annual growth in the last 10 years has been 3,300 students – that’s enough to fill one high school and one middle school and is greater than the size of most school districts in Texas. That growth level is expected to continue for the next five years and FISD is projected to reach nearly 80,000 students by 2025.
The District utilizes data regarding growth in neighborhoods, new construction and population trends to assist in developing rezoning proposals. The following factors are also evaluated:
Community – Frisco ISD knows that schools are an integral part of creating connections and maintaining a sense of community. Leaders are sensitive to this important dynamic and are committed to providing equitable experiences throughout the District, which allows for a smoother transition when change occurs. The curriculum is the same throughout the District, the programs are consistent, the schools are very similar so they will feel familiar, and when a new school opens, at least one third of the staff will be veteran FISD employees. Although the District strives to keep neighborhoods intact as much as possible, many are just too large or too densely populated with students for this to be feasible. While FISD continues to consider future feeder patterns, the growth makes it increasingly difficult to have whole elementary schools feeding a particular middle school and then a particular high school.
In addition to meeting key members of the team who develop the zoning recommendations, audience members also got opportunity to hear from Devin Padavil, principal of Lebanon Trail High School.
Padavil comes to FISD from Pflugerville ISD, where he was honored as the 2014 Region XIII High School Principal of the Year for his work at Hendrickson High School. He described his vision for LTHS, which is planned to open with 9th graders only.
FISD officials also took questions from the audience on a variety of topics including feeder patterns, neighborhood considerations and student programming and opportunities at Lebanon Trail.
The forum did not include any discussion of actual zone proposals as those have not been finalized.
Watch the video below or learn more on the rezoning website.