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Comal ISD rezones about 222 students to relieve overcrowding at Johnson Ranch Elementary
Summary
Board approved a boundary adjustment moving roughly 222 students from Johnson Ranch Elementary to Indian Springs Elementary to reduce overcrowding and limit portable classrooms; board voted 5-0 and staff will notify affected families beginning the next day.
The Comal ISD Board of Trustees voted 5-0 on Feb. 27 to approve a boundary change rezoning roughly 222 students from Johnson Ranch Elementary to Indian Springs Elementary, a move district staff said is intended to ease severe overcrowding at Johnson Ranch.
District staff recommended the change after reviewing current and projected enrollment, traffic patterns, program placement, transfers and feeder patterns. Krista Moffitt, a district staff member who presented the recommendation, said Johnson Ranch currently serves about 1,211 students, well beyond a classroom capacity of about 854, and already uses 16 portable classrooms.
"The area we're currently looking to incorporate into the Indian Springs Elementary School boundary lines ... is approximately 250 homes, and we're talking about 222 students," Mark Stahl, the district's chief operations officer, said during the presentation. Staff said the rezoning preserves the existing secondary feeder pattern to Bulverde Middle School and Piper High School.
Board members pressed staff on alternatives, grandfathering and impacts to special programs. The district said it analyzed neighboring campuses and program placements and recommended no grandfathering because allowing it would require sibling exceptions that would limit the change's effectiveness. Staff also said special-education case managers will contact affected families individually to explain program impacts and accommodations.
Superintendent Dr. Chapman said the district chose to act in February to give families several months' notice rather than wait until the end of the school year. "We wanted to do this early," Chapman said, "so it's February. We wanted to give several months in advance instead of springing something on families in May or June."
The board approved the recommendation on a 5-0 vote. Staff said the district would begin sending detailed notices and an FAQ to affected families the morning after the meeting and would offer follow-up meetings with principals and individualized outreach from special-education staff. Transportation staff said they may add bus routes as needed to accommodate the change.
The action is intended as a multi-year solution: staff presented projections showing that, without the change, Johnson Ranch could exceed 1,300 students in coming years and that rezoning would keep enrollment levels at both campuses more balanced over a 5–10 year horizon.
Board President Russ Garner and trustees David Krasinski, Amanda Jones, Courtney Biasotti and Jason York voted in favor of the motion.
