BVSD studies attendance-boundary changes as North Boulder enrollment dips

Boulder Valley School District leaders on March 11 presented detailed regional enrollment data and several possible attendance-boundary adjustments intended to rebalance school populations, improve neighborhood feeder continuity and account for extensive open-enrollment movement into choice/focus schools.

The issue took center stage during a board work session on policy JC (school attendance areas). Assistant Superintendent for Operations Rob Price opened the presentation by reminding the board why attendance boundaries exist: “Boundaries help us balance resident student population across schools. Boundaries help us plan for facilities, transportation, other resources based on expected enrollment,” he said.

Senior planner Glenn Segru walked the board through metrics for the two regions reviewed that evening — North Boulder and South Boulder — showing marked differences in utilization and open-enrollment patterns. “North Boulder is the largest area in terms of capacity in the district…over 3,600 students,” Segru said, adding that North Boulder currently shows about 60% utilization and projects to roughly 53% in five years under current trends. He contrasted that with South Boulder, which has higher enrollment relative to…