Superintendent outlines bus-only transportation-zone redraw to rebalance enrollments; board to consider in January

Superintendent Keith Perrigan presented recommended changes to Washington County Public Schools’ transportation (bus) zones, telling the board the proposals were bus-only and intended to rebalance enrollment, reduce time on buses for many students and prepare for future housing growth near High Point. He said the last major zone change occurred in 1991 and that the division had been directed at a summer retreat to re-examine zones. Perrigan emphasized these were first-draft recommendations intended to be refined after community feedback and surveys.

Key points from the presentation: Perrigan summarized division enrollment trends (some schools down substantially since 2000 while Bristol‑area schools saw growth), per‑pupil spending disparities tied to building usage and square footage, and the availability of repurposed classroom spaces at several elementary schools. He identified specific road-level changes that would move pockets of students from High Point to Valley Institute or Greendale, reassign parts of Watauga to Meadowview, and re-route other rural neighborhoods to different middle/high school feeders. He repeatedly framed the proposals as affecting where buses run, not where parents may choose to drive their children.

Board members asked detailed operational questions: how many students currently live out-of-zone (percentages were cited — e.g., Watauga ~26% out of zone; Avenue ~30%), whether any routes would increase ride time substantially (most proposals added about five to six minutes for elementary students; one area would add more), the impact on classroom staffing and special‑education supports, and how the division would handle grandfathering for current ninth–eleventh graders. Perrigan proposed grandfathering transportation for current 9th–11th graders for three years and surveying affected families after a board decision.

On population growth, Perrigan warned a planned workforce housing development near High Point could add hundreds of homes (the presentation cited an estimate of roughly 323 lots in the development area), which would require further planning. He said modeling shows many schools could be within 5% of their current enrollment even if out‑of‑zone transfers were removed, but acknowledged significant local variation.

Next steps outlined were: staff will (1) treat the recommendations as first draft and communicate them to affected families by mail, (2) solicit family preferences through a survey (ride the bus vs. drive), (3) model routes and staffing changes, and (4) return to the board for action at one of two January meetings. The board did not vote on the zoning plan at this meeting.