The Anne Arundel County Board of Education voted 5–3 on Nov. 5 to advance its Phase 2 redistricting recommendation to public briefing and a subsequent public hearing after extended debate and multiple amendments.

The final motion sent the superintendent's recommendation to public processes with several exceptions. The board's action excludes the Gingerville, Poplar Point and Glen Eleanor neighborhoods from rezoning into the Annapolis cluster (Rolling Knolls Elementary, Wiley H. Bates Middle and Annapolis High). It also preserves existing assignments for a neighborhood south of Carrollton Road and for an area bounded by Jackson Street, and it keeps a split articulation for Nantucket Elementary (moving a subset of students to the Arundel pathway while leaving other articulations intact). The motion also included a carve-out keeping a small group of homes in Wauchapel at Wauchapel Elementary and retaining four South River Colony neighborhoods at Central Elementary.

Board members debated capacity, travel times and equity during a multi-hour discussion. Bill Heizer, the district's chief operating officer, described the trade-offs staff considered when weighing alternative scenarios and warned that leaving Crofton High School over capacity could reduce the district's chances for state capital funding for future projects. He said some alternatives would have shifted many more students and lengthened travel on rural roads or major corridors.

"We don't have the maps to show, but I encourage the public to pull up the tool," Heizer said during the meeting as staff walked trustees through consultant scenarios. He explained that some options would disrupt more students and move them farther, increasing travel time and operational complexity.

Several board members said they were sympathetic to community concerns about moving students, particularly younger students and those who depend on local extracurricular access. Trustee Michelle McFarland noted potential impacts on students' participation in after-school activities and raised concerns about travel on congested corridors.

"When I looked yesterday and we sat with you, the other option was cut Crofton and send them down to South County," McFarland said. "That's a lot of disruption. The commute...would most likely eliminate those students from those extracurricular opportunities."

Trustees also discussed capital funding mechanics. District counsel and staff told the board state reviewers evaluate project requests based on adjacent-school capacity and seven-year projections; if adjacent schools show available seats, state support for a proposed addition or replacement can be reduced or denied. Staff cited earlier examples in which funding levels were reduced during review.

The final vote to advance the amended recommendation passed 5–3. Ayes: Morgan, Dent, Tobin, Pulliam and President Silkworth. Nays: McDermott, Schallheim and McFarland.

Next steps: the board-advanced package will be posted for public briefings and hearings so community members can weigh in before trustees take a final redistricting vote.