GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — At its February 2011 meeting, the Gwinnett County Board of Education received a redistricting update. Board members were reminded of two changes related to the December 2009 redistricting that will go into effect next school year. Letters have been mailed to those affected in the Central Gwinnett and Shiloh clusters. Those changes affect the middle school feeder pattern in the Central Gwinnett Cluster and two elementary attendance zones in the Shiloh Cluster. Those changes are:
--In August 2011, Moore Middle School will open in the Central Gwinnett Cluster. With the opening of this middle school, we will have two distinct feeder patterns, one for Moore Middle and one for Richards Middle. Lawrenceville and Winn Holt elementary schools will feed into the new Moore Middle School, while Cedar Hill, Jenkins, and Simonton elementary schools will continue to feed into Richards Middle. This cluster alignment was planned as part of the December 2009 redistricting which established the attendance zone for Jenkins Elementary.
--There will be a shifting of elementary attendance zones in the Shiloh Cluster as sections of Spain Road, Waterfront Place, Hadley Place and Forest Bend Road will move to Partee ES from Annistown ES. This change also was part of the approved redistricting in December 2009.
--In addition, the redistricting process will begin this spring in the Peachtree Ridge and Duluth clusters. Peachtree Ridge HS and Hull MS are over capacity. The schools involved in this redistricting are Duluth HS, Peachtree Ridge HS, Hull MS, Duluth MS, Mason ES, Chesney ES, and Harris ES. Through this redistricting, the enrollment will be better balanced between the two clusters providing much needed relief to the Peachtree Ridge Cluster beginning in the 2011-12 school year.
Gwinnett County Public Schools uses a very inclusive process for redistricting that allows the district to gather input from educators, parents, and community members on the proposed revisions. This process allows the district to relieve overcrowding of schools, balancing enrollment among schools while minimizing disruption and keeping neighborhoods intact, when possible.
The redistricting process begins with the development of proposed maps that use set school system criteria. These criteria include looking at current enrollment, enrollment forecasts, enrollment histories, existing identifiable boundaries, school locations, and student transportation. These initial maps are based on the Planning Departments professional opinion of what best meets the systems criteria and purpose of redistricting. These maps, along with input forms, are posted on the districts web site.
Another key step in the process is the formation of committees at the local schools affected by the proposed redistricting. The committees are chaired by an educator and a community member. These committees facilitate the gathering of feedback on the proposed maps. This input is provided by parents and citizens via the form. The Committee chairs review this feedback and make a recommendation to the Planning Department.
The Planning Department analyzes the community input along with the Committee recommendations. They try to look at every alternative plan submitted, evaluating them using the systems criteria for redistricting. When the submitted suggestions are in line with the systems criteria they are taken into consideration.
Public meetings are held before the Gwinnett County Board of Education to allow for another phase of public input.
The Planning Department makes a final recommendation, taking into account redistricting criteria and long-term facility plans, along with recommendations from community members. The Gwinnett County Board of Education is anticipated to make its final decision on the Peachtree Ridge/Duluth redistricting on April 21, 2011.
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