BCPS presents Southeast-area boundary recommendation amid parent concerns over late data updates
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Summary
BCPS staff presented a recommendation (Option B) for the Southeast Area elementary boundary study, saying updated 09/30/2025 enrollment vetted by MSDE brings all three schools under 90% utilization; parents and some board members urged reconvening the committee after learning utilization percentages changed late in the process. Public hearing: Feb. 25; board vote: March 10, 2026.
BCPS staff presented the Southeast Area Elementary School boundary study recommendation on Feb. 10, saying the Boundary Study Committee selected Option B and that updated, MSDE-verified September 30, 2025 enrollment produces utilization rates in the upper 80s for the three participating schools.
The committee’s work focused on three objectives: accommodating a regional special-education program, balancing enrollment and eliminating satellite attendance areas. Staff said the special-education program is planned for Chase Elementary and that roughly 30 students for that program are included in the counts. Under Option B staff said approximately 122 students would move to other schools while 589 would remain at their current schools.
Why it matters: parents and committee volunteers told the board that the enrollment figures used publicly during the committee’s meetings differed from the official September 30 numbers that were later provided to the committee. Several parents — including Matt Cambry, who said Oliver Beach Elementary had been shown as 50% capacity earlier — argued the late appearance of revised utilization calculations undermined community review and asked staff to reconvene the committee to reassess options with the newly finalized data.
Board members and staff disputed the notion that the committee acted without access to updated data. BCPS staff said the committee was provided September 30 enrollment figures in November but did not have pre-calculated utilization percentages until the final meeting; staff also said the committee had examined many options and ultimately nominated the recommendation now before the board. Dr. Rogers told the board the recommendation from the committee will be the subject of review at the board’s public hearing and deliberation in March.
What was decided and what’s next: staff announced a public hearing on the proposed recommendation for Feb. 25 at 6:30 p.m. at Stemmers Run Middle School (speaker sign-up 5:30–6:25 p.m.). The board is scheduled to vote on the boundary change at its March 10, 2026 meeting. Board members asked staff to post the committee slides and the statistical comparison document referenced during Q&A so the public could review the updated enrollment and utilization tables.
Key quotes: “Parents need to be briefed on the change in data, the source of the data, and details of the change,” said parent Matt Cambry. “The committee was given the actual enrollment of each school on Sept. 30,” staff responded, noting those numbers were verified by MSDE.
The board also discussed transportation impacts and said transportation and special-education staff had evaluated drive times under both options; staff said Option A would require more transit adjustments than Option B.
The boundary study materials (slides and statistical-comparison tables) are posted on the BCPS boundary-study web page; staff said they will double-check that the specific slide packages referenced in the meeting are accessible to the public.