The Greater Clark County Schools Board of Trustees approved new elementary school boundary maps after a presentation explaining changes intended to rebalance building enrollment and streamline transportation.

School staff said the plan redraws zones for Franklin Square, North Haven, Parkwood, Pike and Riverside elementary schools. The changes remove some English-language-learner (ELL) magnet assignments from Franklin Square and return many ELL students to their home schools, expand North Haven’s boundaries, slightly adjust Parkwood’s line (affecting about 13 students), shift some neighborhoods between Pike and Riverside, and add portions of a new subdivision near Capitol Hills into Riverside.

District staff told trustees the revisions are meant to reduce overcrowding at Franklin Square and to reduce long ELL bus routes that now move students between several schools. The presenters said Riverside will gain enough ELL students to operate its own program next year and that some students who expected to attend the new Pike building may instead be assigned to other schools.

Administrators described the logistics and timeline for transfers. Students already attending a school on a current transfer will be allowed to remain on that transfer. Families whose children are assigned to a different school by the map will receive a letter and may submit a special transfer request; the district offered a Feb. 21 deadline for families to notify the district if they can provide their own transportation and wish to remain at their current school. Staff said they would begin mailing letters immediately upon board approval.

Board members and staff acknowledged there will be some displaced expectations and that a small number of families will have to change schools. The presenters said the changes minimize the number of families affected, balance class sizes and save transportation time — the district estimated travel-time savings of minutes on some routes. Trustees approved the map by voice vote.

Implementation steps noted by staff include mailing assignment letters, processing special transfer requests, and monitoring enrollment counts so the district can finalize teacher assignments for next year.