Board Agenda - February 06, 2007

j. Elementary bilingual student assignment

Presenter: Jeff Bailey

Purpose: A - Request decision - closure required

Time: No time limit

Description:

Over the last several years we have seen an increase in the bilingual enrollment at Forman Elementary School. Currently there are 231 bilingual students attending Forman. With this increasing enrollment we are faced with limited classroom space. Two years ago we added 4 portable classrooms to address the needed space. Our recommendation is to move the Dooley bilingual students from Forman to Hickey. There are forty-two (42) bilingual students living in the Dooley attendance zone that are bused to Forman. Thirty-six (36) of these students live in the Cottonwood Trailer Park on 14th Street and the other six (6) bilingual students live at different locations.

Assigning the Dooley bilingual students to Hickey Elementary provides the needed space at Forman and eliminates the need to add another portable. The Dooley bilingual students will attend Hickey which already has an existing bilingual program and space to accommodate the children. The bus from Cottonwood Trailer Park to Forman is 1.61 miles. A bus from Cottonwood Trailer Park to Hickey is 3.59 miles. I feel this recommendation meets our facility needs and academic program needs until such time we have enough Dooley bilingual students to begin a bilingual program on the Dooley campus.

Recommendation:

The administration recommends moving the Dooley bilingual students from Forman Elementary School to Hickey Elementary School for the 2007-2008 school year.

Business Impact:

An additional bus route will be needed resulting in a $7,000 budget impact.

Summary:

Appendix:

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