SD U-46 outlines boundary changes, expedited residency-exception process after community sessions

Board President Owens opened a facilities planning update at the Feb. 24 School Board meeting of School District U-46, where Brian Lindholm, chief of staff, and Dr. Anne Williams, deputy superintendent of operations, reported on community feedback gathered during the district’s “Mapping Our Future” sessions and next steps for establishing new attendance boundaries.

The district said it held engagement sessions in each high-school feeder network from December through January, combining in-person open-house events with an online feedback form. Lindholm said sign-in numbers likely undercounted actual attendance because some participants did not sign the sheets; the administration also received additional feedback from people who watched informational videos online.

Administration told the board the community consistently prioritized distance and travel time to school, consistent feeder patterns, keeping neighborhoods together, sibling stability and avoiding boundary changes in consecutive years. Transportation staff shared routing insights, emphasizing the need to limit long bus rides for specialized programs and to favor routing that reduces left turns onto major roads. Lindholm said the district will consider targeted boundary-edge adjustments and return a revised boundary proposal at the board’s second March meeting; formal review of residency-exception requests will not begin until the board approves final boundaries.

Nut graf: The update framed two near-term actions that will affect families: (1) the board will receive revised boundary recommendations in March, and (2) the district has adjusted its residency-exception process to accept expedited requests related to approved boundary changes but will only begin formal consideration after the board’s approval. Administration emphasized space limitations and parent responsibility for transportation when exceptions are approved.

Key details and timeline: Lindholm explained that some sessions had low turnout (notably Larkin) because of scheduling and weather; he said the team consolidated feedback from sessions with low form returns to avoid losing input. The district plans targeted school-level sessions after the board formally approves boundaries to explain transitions, timelines and how to apply for residency exceptions. Lindholm said the district has already received several residency-exception requests but is “sitting on them” because the requests are tied to preliminary recommendations.

On conditions for approval, the district repeated that exception approvals will be contingent on available space at the requested site and families providing their own transportation. Lindholm asked the board to expect a revised boundary proposal at the board’s second March meeting; during Q&A board members asked staff to look at how elementary schools feed into multiple middle schools and at ways to reduce splits when buildings retire (example cited: Hanover Countryside), and to ensure outreach to networks with low session turnout before or after the vote as needed.

Public comment: During the public-comment period, Laura Connery urged the board to keep Nature Ridge Elementary students assigned to Canyon Woods Middle School rather than reassigning parts of Nature Ridge to Eastview Middle School. Connery said the proposed reassignment would add about a mile of travel and require crossing two train tracks, creating safety and tardiness concerns when freight and commuter trains stop or slow; she also said the split would separate classmates who attend the same elementary school.

Discussion vs. decision: The board and staff treated the presentation as an update and planning step; no boundary resolution or final vote occurred at the meeting. Lindholm and Williams presented options and next steps; final decisions are contingent on future board action.

Ending: The district will bring a revised boundary proposal back to the board in March and said it will provide school-level sessions after formal approval to explain transitions and the residency-exception process.