OCR Text |
Show F Parents key to boundary change success r As the four-hour Davis County School Board meeting discussing high school boundary changes drew to a close Tuesday night, the board became increasingly aware of one rather large problem that it would have to deal with while attempting at-tempting to implement the changes. A problem that is almost entirely out of the school board's control. The jeers and heckles from the 500 parents that filled the Wood Cross High auditorium as those of differing opinions presented their views not only reaffirmed the emotional nature of the dilemma, but made it clear to the board that without parental support, the success of the boundary changes, and the academic success of the uprooted students, could be jeopardized. jeopardiz-ed. Parents can only make the chore of changing to a new high school more traumatic by sending their children to school filled fill-ed with their anger and disappointment in the school board's decision. Students can only make the chore of changing to a new high school more traumatic if they allow gossip and misconception about their new high school or incoming classmates to prevent them from accepting, respecting and befriending one another. Only unity and cooperation throughout the district can preserve the integrity and quality of the educational process in Davis County schools. The Clipper urges parents and students to support the board's boundary decision when it is finally announced. Step by step, the school board has treated the boundary changes in a positive manner. Its first step was to hire a competent consultant, Dr. Reed Call. Formerly the superintendent of the Granite School District, Call was able to call upon his own experience as the or-chestrator or-chestrator of high school boundary changes in the Granite District. Next, the board organized panel groups representing the i four high schools involved, Bountiful, Davis, Viewmont and Woods Cross. These groups were specifically assigned to collect input by holding open meetings. The panels even went so far as to canvass their neighborhoods door to door. The fact that 500 people came to Tuesday's meeting not only signifies the widespread impact of the boundary changes but illustrates the panels' effectiveness in informing the public of the situation. These panels should be commended for their exhaustive efforts. Not only has the board listened to panel and parental concern, but in many cases, the board has taken action on it. The board has attempted to incorporate the recommendation of a knowledgeable consultant with the input of four hardworking hard-working panel groups that have spent an ovenvhelming amount of time and effort to gather the opinions of the community com-munity from the grass roots level. All the pieces are in place. The board must move now to deal with overcrowded classrooms that adversely affect the quality of education Davis County children receive and ensure adequate usage of its current cur-rent facilities. 1 Although the final figures are not in yet, this year's preliminary count well exceeds 55,000 students. Since last year, Davis County schools have added over 2,000 students to its enrollment. The responsibility to make the changes work not only rests on the shoulders of the school board and parents, but faculty and administration of the affected high schools also play an important role. Parent teacher associations should join with administrations in making an extra effort to guarantee this comes to fruition. As Kendell said Tuesday night, growth brings with it change. This problem and its solution is the responsibility of all Davis County residents. |