Some Orange County parents whose children are at risk of having to move to a different school got good news from the school district, while others said Wednesday night they weren't so lucky.
A rezoning plan to make way for new K-8 schools means some students will no longer be allowed to attend certain magnet schools. The plan would make Howard Middle School and Hillcrest Elementary schools zoneless magnet schools, which means the only way to attend would be to be accepted to the schools; living nearby wouldn't guarantee admittance in the future.
Kelli Hastings was pleased with what she heard from the closed-door
"He'll be able to stay at Hillcrest, even when the zoning changes go into effect, because the kids that are already here won't be affected," Hastings said.
The more than 75 parents who attended also heard that those with preschool
"I am roughly half-satisfied, half-dissatisfied," parent Lisa Polanik said.
Polanik shared her concerns with Channel 9 earlier this month. While her son is grandfathered in at Hillcrest, she's among many parents pointing out what they see as problems in rezoning the community school
"It also impacts the ability of children to walk to school or bike, that's been a big part of Hillcrest for those years. Howard (Middle School) as well," Polanik said.
"It just seemed like that was being split up, and I think that really was what was heart-wrenching to a lot of us, the zoned parents," parent Heidi Foster said.
Others said they still don't know how zoned students who can't handle a magnet program will be addressed.
"Will there be resources on hand to facilitate having those children up to par and will they do something about them without having them to go outside of the zone?" parent Megan Sears asked.
Some parents said they're still waiting to hear whether siblings can be grandfathered in at Hillcrest and if neighborhood children who aren't grandfathered in, might receive magnet preference.
A rezoning plan to make way for new K-8 schools means some students will no longer be allowed to attend certain magnet schools. The plan would make Howard Middle School and Hillcrest Elementary schools zoneless magnet schools, which means the only way to attend would be to be accepted to the schools; living nearby wouldn't guarantee admittance in the future.
Kelli Hastings was pleased with what she heard from the closed-door
"He'll be able to stay at Hillcrest, even when the zoning changes go into effect, because the kids that are already here won't be affected," Hastings said.
The more than 75 parents who attended also heard that those with preschool
"I am roughly half-satisfied, half-dissatisfied," parent Lisa Polanik said.
Polanik shared her concerns with Channel 9 earlier this month. While her son is grandfathered in at Hillcrest, she's among many parents pointing out what they see as problems in rezoning the community school
"It also impacts the ability of children to walk to school or bike
"It just seemed like that was being split up, and I think that really was what was heart-wrenching to a lot of us, the zoned parents," parent Heidi Foster said.
Others said they still don't know how zoned students who can't handle a magnet program will be addressed.
"Will there be resources on hand to facilitate having those children up to par and will they do something about them without having them to go outside of the zone?" parent Megan Sears asked.
Some parents said they're still waiting to hear whether siblings can be grandfathered in at Hillcrest and if neighborhood children who aren't grandfathered in
WFTV
