   
Rezoning committee decides to redraw boundaries
By JESSICA BAUER
LOG CABIN STAFF WRITER
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 Significant changes have been made to the preliminary proposal for the new boundaries of the elementary schools in the Conway School District.
The district's rezoning committee met Thursday morning, and Dr. Greg Murry, superintendent, said the group has decided to redraw the proposed boundaries for the elementary schools to allow neighborhoods to be pooled into the new school to be built on Padgett Road; however, the new plan doesn't affect as many areas as the first proposal did.
"We made the decision that we would return back to the zones that we're currently under in assigning students to elementary schools with the exception of pooling some of the students to the Padgett school," Murry said after Thursday's meeting. "The majority are now coming from Jim Stone Elementary School and some are coming from Julia Lee Moore, Ida Burns and Marguerite Vann, primarily coming from the northern boundaries of these schools."
Although a map of the new proposed plan has not been drawn yet, Murry said once the map is finished, which will take at least a week, parents will be invited to view it at the affected schools.
In the previous proposal, these school zones were affected, along with the zones for Ellen Smith and Sallie Cone elementary schools. One reason for the shift in plans came from discussions held at the six elementary schools that would have originally had their boundaries changed.
"Carroll Bishop (assistant superintendent) went to the PTO meetings, presented the proposed map, heard comments and told the parents we certainly would be listening to those comments," Murry said.
Not only did this change come from a reaction to the parents' and patrons' comments, but a change the district has seen over the past few months, according to Murry.
Murry said the district has been studying the zoning map over the past two years for the purpose of redrawing boundaries to allow a new school to be built and also to allow room for growth in existing schools.
"Based on our financial situation, we have made the decision to increase the number of students in a class, which decreases the number of teachers we need," Murry said. "That also frees up some classrooms in those buildings. And we're getting to the point of freeing up those classrooms through what we're doing right now, so it's not much of an issue anymore."
The rezoning committee that met Thursday morning was comprised of two parents, several principals, central office administration and Carolyn Lewis, member of the Conway School District's Board of Education. There was no public input at this meeting as it was a committee meeting, not a public meeting, according to Murry.
The next step in district rezoning will take place at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 15, at the James H. Clark Auditorium on the west campus of Conway High School. Parents and other members of the community will be invited to a public hearing to make comments after viewing the proposed map. Murry said he doesn't expect the proposal created at the rezoning committee meeting to change before that hearing.
After the public hearing, the final recommendation will go before the school board during its regular December meeting.
User Comments:
OK -- 11:46 Friday, Oct. 12, 2007
How about publishing map in LCD?
Many parents cannot go during business hours.
Response LCD?
Amen! -- 14:19 Friday, Oct. 12, 2007
I want a map to be published in the LCD too! Help some folks out!
-- 16:01 Friday, Oct. 12, 2007
"Based on our financial situation, we have made the decision to increase the number of students in a class, which decreases the number of teachers we need,"
concerned -- 16:15 Friday, Oct. 12, 2007
That means a lot of good teachers are going to be given walking papers. So sad. Hope none of them have families to support
parent of student -- 16:49 Friday, Oct. 12, 2007
we moved three blocks. which put us even closer to theo jones, which is where he had been attending since he was 5. This move put us in the Ellen Smith district. We went from a street address to an avenue address and that is what change. We want to go back to Theo.
Rick Fahr, editor -- 16:54 Friday, Oct. 12, 2007
District officials are constructing a map of the zones, and we will post it online and publish it in the newspaper as soon as we receive it.
-- 17:48 Friday, Oct. 12, 2007
yep. teachers will lose their jobs. all to make class sizes bigger so that kids will not get the individualized instruction that is so important to raising state testing scores.
and for schools that don't score as highly as the others, that's a shame.
-- 17:51 Friday, Oct. 12, 2007
oh, and notice the record enrollment link above. decreasing the talented teachers we have in conway just doesn't seem to be the thing to do! and who got the school into this financial situation anyway?
-- 17:52 Friday, Oct. 12, 2007
why should teachers get the boot for the administrations failure to control the budget?
Affected -- 1:41 Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007
To 17:51 Friday:
The school is probably not at liberty to say "who."
-- 6:31 Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007
FYI....conway schools are readying to fire 60 teachers at the end of this year.
a teacher -- 8:48 Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007
yes- teachers will be let go. and we are all very scared. past administration got us in this financial trouble. parents did a great job voicing about the rezoning. now it's time to voice about the lay offs. teachers don't need to be cut, class sizes don't need to be bigger. if anything, we have too many admins sitting around deciding who needs to be cut! please speak up and help us out!
concerned parent -- 10:17 Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007
It is completely embarassing for our school district to be in this financial position. Why is the school board & others responsible for the budget not being held accountable? Students, parents, and teachers are now paying the price for their mistakes!
OK -- 11:16 Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007
Thanks LCD,publishing map will be a great service to your readers!
Mad -- 11:20 Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007
Funny,
We moved from Little Rock 22 years ago b/c of school mess.
For some reason Conway School Board has followed the same failed policies.
Go figure!!
Affected -- 23:05 Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007
Concerned, you shouldn't blame a certain group for things for which it is not responsible. Most teachers can tell where the problem originated. And rumors about how many teachers will be "let go" are just that. The gossip mongers started out with 60 and the story has grown to 170. The teachers will be addressed Tuesday and will find out at that time what the plans are. Whatever the case, Dr. Murry said when he came here that he could fix the problem, and I think he needs to be given that chance. Someone has to start somewhere.
-- 10:05 Sunday, Oct. 14, 2007
trust me....it's from an inside source...60 is the number. It's fact.
Affected -- 10:27 Sunday, Oct. 14, 2007
I am not blaming a certain group! I am blaming YOU- the school board! You approve everything that is done in the district! The problem could be fixed by starting at the root of the problem- the top. And then you work your way down the ladder!! I believe that Dr. Murry will do everything in his power to fix this problem. I just hope the "lay-offs" start with those that caused it. This should begin with the school board. I am fully aware however, that this will never happen.
-- 7:41 Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2007
The comment written "10:27 Sunday" was not written by "Affected." To the one who DID write it and to others, if you will go back up to "A Teacher", written at 8:48 Sunday, he/she alluded to who is responsible for the problem. I still say the gossip mongers, even though they may be close to accurate, are doubling the tension and should be quiet. Cutbacks would be expected in every form for a school district to survive, which is what everyone wants.
If you're a teacher, a parent of a student, a Conway resident with no school involvement, a board member, a custodian - we were all given signs a year or more ago and didn't land on the steps of the ad building to question anything. No one - including myself - made a complaint or raised a question in time to avoid this.
another teacher -- 19:49 Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2007
"Affected" If you believe that the teacher's in this district ONLY blame one person (I'm assuming you are referring to our former superintendent) you have not spoken to many people in this district. Where is the accountability??
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