Editorial: Intolerable conditions at school

Friday, Feb. 18, 2000 | 9:15 a.m.

Silverado High School is at the breaking point. The school has 3,600 students, which is 42 percent over capacity. It is expected to continue growing, as Clark County School District officials estimate that 4,000 students will attend Silverado in the next school year. A new school about three miles from Silverado could ease the situation, but that school won't be ready to open until 2001. So that means the School District can't dillydally any longer; immediate action is needed to ease the overcrowding.

This situation has been exceptionally difficult on the students. At a recent meeting of the Attendance Zone Advisory Commission, which makes recommendations to the School Board on how to relieve overcrowding at local schools, students spoke out on what this means for them. Some students said that class sizes are over the 30-student limit, with some students even having to sit on the floor in extreme circumstances. Others feel as if they're herded like cattle when going from class to class. Another student noted that just trying to use a restroom after a class ends in these crowded conditions can be an ordeal. This isn't just about a difficult learning environment, however. Overcrowding presents genuine safety problems and is a concern to local fire officials.

So what are some of the options? One possibility would be to have double sessions. Another option would be to redraw the boundaries and send the students to other schools that either are underfilled -- such as Foothill High School -- or those schools that while overcrowded are not as severe as those conditions found at Silverado. Instead the Attendance Zone Advisory Commission recommended Tuesday that the School Board require that some new high school students go to Foothill. Also, all students at Silverado would have a one-time offer to voluntarily transfer to Foothill until they graduate. This option, though, won't make a dent in overcrowding. Hardly any students or parents have indicated they would go to Foothill -- after all, they've fiercely fought the prospect of being sent there in the first place. Dusty Dickens, director of the School District's De mographics, Zoning and Realty Department, told Sun reporter Terry Webster this won't provide significant relief, which could mean double sessions.

The commission had a difficult decision. Parents objected to nearly every option that was explored -- and it's easy to understand why. What parents would want to see their child bused to a school 14 miles away when one is practically in their back yard? Yet the commission has fallen far short of addressing the overcrowded situation, so the School Board should start over. While the School Board should resist double sessions, it may have to revisit the issue of redrawing high school boundaries -- despite possible opposition from parents and students. There are no easy choices, but the fact remains that something has to be done immediately. The current situation at Silverado is intolerable.