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Brookings School District board approves modified elementary boundaries, removes small neighborhood —notches—
Summary
The Brookings School District Board voted to adopt the superintendent's revised elementary boundary plan, removing two small irregular —notches— and a separate blue-box area after staff analysis and public feedback showed limited enrollment gains but notable disruption for affected families.
The Brookings School District Board approved the superintendent's recommendation to implement modified elementary school boundaries this fall, removing several small irregular —notches— and focusing changes on the district's east side, including Aurora and neighborhoods along 22nd Avenue South moving to Hillcrest.
Superintendent Schultz, who led the presentation and analysis, told the board the recommendation responds to community survey input and updated kindergarten registration figures. "My recommendation is we don't have option A or B because if I take out the irregular boundary areas...none of the notches or irregular boundary areas do enough with enrollment changes to outweigh the disruption it has to those neighborhoods," she said, urging the board to avoid changes that split established communities.
Schultz summarized the district's public-safety and transportation review and enrollment balances, saying Dakota Prairie remains the largest of the three elementaries but that all buildings operate well under capacity. She described two small Park Avenue and Camelot notches as fewer than 20 students each and said the larger blue-box area discussed for Option 2B had roughly 50 students — figures the board used to weigh disruption against marginal enrollment shifts.
Transportation considerations were a key factor. Staff cautioned the new, shorter route that community members mentioned is not paved and is not considered safe for bus use in winter. The district reported Aurora-to-Hillcrest as about 6.6 miles (roughly 11 minutes on preferred roads) versus Aurora-to-Dakota Prairie about 11.5 miles (roughly 16 minutes) on the paved routes staff would rely on; transportation staff also estimated a daily savings of about $22.35 and an annual savings just under $4,000 from certain routing adjustments.
Public comment reinforced the board's concerns about neighborhood disruption. "That blue box is a scary box for us," Nathan Kirby, a lifelong Brookings resident and Dakota Prairie parent, told the board, describing how a four-block reassignment would affect his family's routines and his child's comfort with teachers and peers.
Board members thanked staff for extensive survey work and said the recommendation balances class sizes and traffic safety while honoring existing boundary petitions. Teresa (board member) moved to approve the superintendent's modified boundaries, the motion was seconded and the chair stated the motion passed. The transcript does not record a roll-call vote tally.
Staff said they would publish the decision on the district website, send targeted correspondence to affected families and hold spring registration nights at each elementary to confirm incoming kindergarten numbers.
Implementation details for individual family petitions and extenuating-circumstance requests will follow the district's established petition process; the board noted those petitions already in place will be honored.
