Merced City School District approves timeline to redraw elementary boundaries and move sixth grade to middle schools

The Merced City School District Board of Trustees voted unanimously Jan. 28 to adopt a timeline to address school overcrowding, approving elementary boundary adjustments beginning in the 2025–26 school year and moving sixth graders to middle schools in 2026–27.

Director Baine, who presented the district enrollment projections, said the district currently has “6 schools that are overcapacity” and projected that, if nothing changes, some campuses would exceed capacity levels within six years. He cited specific projections saying Peterson Elementary could reach about 136% capacity, Franklin about 122%, Rivera about 115% and Stephanie about 112% if current trends continue.

The district considered four scenarios. Officials said a phased approach — changing elementary boundaries first and adjusting middle school boundaries a year later while relocating sixth grade in 2026–27 — would provide relief across the district without immediately requiring a new school. Baine told trustees that the district is not currently eligible for additional state construction funding because enrollment growth projections do not yet meet the state’s significant-growth threshold; he said developer impact fees collected by the district are roughly $3.64 per square foot and that an earlier consultant estimated a fiscal impact closer to $12 per square foot.

Trustees asked how the process would account for school culture, staff impacts and transportation. Trustee Delgado asked for clarity on what “significant growth” means and whether individual schools and neighborhoods were surveyed; Baine replied the enrollment study focused on projections and that the district has held staff and community forums, collected more than 100 ThoughtExchange comments and will bring street-level maps and address-based pupil-service analyses to upcoming meetings.

Superintendent Juliana Stocking said literacy and teacher-to-student ratios were key drivers of the timeline. She emphasized plans to notify families and staff in spring and noted the district will present detailed map options at a board workshop and the Feb. 11 meeting. The board’s action directs staff to move forward with the recommended timeline and to bring map options and implementation details back to the board.

Next steps: the district will host a public community meeting on Feb. 4 at Crookshank Middle School (5:30–7 p.m.) and return maps to the board on Feb. 11 for further action.