Thursday, Jan. 15, 2004 | 11:15 a.m.
More than 200 parents descended upon Green Valley High School Wednesday night to weigh in on proposals that could change where their children go to school next year, and most who spoke said they want their children to stay where they are.
The meeting was the second of five to discuss proposed school attendance zones changing to accommodate the opening of 13 schools in August. For more than 10 years such meetings have been an annual staple in fast growing Clark County, which is expected to add 12,000 students next year to bring the districtwide student population to about 280,000. The annual shuffling of school zones has meant almost yearly moves to different schools for some students, even though their families don't move.
The Wednesday meeting focused on changes coming to the district's Southeast Region where three schools -- one high, one middle and one elementary -- will open in the coming school year.
The opening of Del Sol High School, which may affect students at Silverado, Green Valley, Valley, Chaparral and Las Vegas high schools, got the most attention from the parents in attendance.
The crowd overwhelmingly supported the two proposals that would move 156 students from Green Valley to the new school over the proposal that would move 367 Green Valley students to Del Sol. Some parents said they and their peers really want none of the Green valley students to be moved.
Green Valley sophomore Rebecca Rogers, one of about 45 people to speak about the proposed high school shuffles, said she doesn't want to leave the choir program or her friends at Green valley. Rogers would be in Del Sol's school zone under one of the proposals.
"It's easier to do the right thing and get good grades if you stay with friends," she said.
Tammy Wood, whose son is a sophomore at Green Valley, said that while emotionally she wants her son to stay with his friends and the music program he's involved with, she knows the School Board won't base its decision on emotions. Wood said safety is her top argument against shifting students from Green Valley to Del Sol. A concrete-lined wash that is also Duck Creek would become an easy and dangerous shortcut for the youths in her neighborhood if they had to go to Del Sol, she said.
Safety was also a top concern among parents who spoke about the opening of Hummel Elementary School, which is expected to affect students at Bass, Cartwright, Gehring and Wolff elementary schools.
Parents said they were worried about children crossing Silverado Ranch Boulevard, part of which would serve as a zone boundary in the proposal most said they preferred.
Parents of potentially affected elementary school students and those whose children could end up at new schools due to the opening of the new Mannion Middle School also said they wanted their children to stay with their friends and programs at their current schools.
In the Southeast Region, Mannion is opening and Burkholder Middle School is closing for renovation, which could affect students at Brown, Cannon, Greenspun, Miller and White middle schools.
One parent suggested all the students from Burkholder go to Mannion, on Paradise Hills Drive near Greenway Road, and the rest of the schools in the area be left alone.
The Attendance Zone Advisory Commission, which will recommend new school zones to the School Board, is scheduled to meet Tuesday to discuss the issues raised during the Wednesday night meeting.
Sharon Dattoli, demographics/zoning coordinator in the School District's Demographics, Zoning and Realty Department, said the proposals could change as a result of the public comments.
On Tuesday the commission changed proposals for new elementary school zones in the Southwest Region in response to comments made during a Monday night public meeting.
The commission decided to change the proposed zoning districts so there wouldn't be any neighborhoods slated to go through two school changes in the next two years, as requested by parents.
In response to another request from the Monday meeting, the commission also decided to develop a new possible rezoning plan that would move part or all of The Lakes development into the new Spring Valley High School zone, instead of leaving that community in the Bonanza High School zone.
The commission's final recommendation on redrawing attendance boundaries for elementary schools will be presented to the School Board on Feb. 24, and the board could vote on the recommendation during that meeting.
The commission's recommendation for middle and high schools' new attendance zones will go to the School Board for a possible vote on March 2.
School Board member Sheila Moulton attended the Wednesday meeting but sat in the back and did not address the crowd.
"I heard that change is hard, and people don't want to change. But that's also good because it means we have good schools and people want to stay," said Moulton, who would not say what rezoning proposal she favors.
The remaining public meetings on the new school zones are scheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday at Las Vegas High School; Wednesday at Mojave High School; and Jan. 26 at Cimarron-Memorial High School.
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