WICOMICO COUNTY, Md.- Wicomico County Public Schools announced they will postpone the redistricting discussion for the school district.
In an email statement, school administrators and the Board of Education say they have read and heard many comments, questions and concerns and decided that the timing is not right for making boundary changes for the 2015-2016 school year.
The informational meetings scheduled for Feb. 12, 17 and 19 will not be held.
In the statement, officials explain four of the considerations that were part of the redistricting conversation did not involve changing school boundaries. Those considerations remain in plans for the 2015-2016 school year. The statement says officials plan to meet with the schools, staff members and families involved to work out details for the following:
- Bennett Middle: The new Bennett Middle School will open with the same student attendance area. In order to transport all BMS students without requiring additional buses, Bennett Middle's school day is proposed to be 8:15 a.m.-3:15 p.m.
- Middle school ESOL program: The plan is to have one center at Bennett Middle to serve the school's approximately 50 students, and another center at Wicomico Middle to serve approximately 42 ESOL students from the other four middle schools, 20 of whom are in the Wicomico Middle walking area. This change would reduce transportation time and increase instructional time for most students.
- Charles H. Chipman Elementary/Glen Avenue Elementary: Grade 2 would move to Glen Avenue, the school Chipman students currently begin attending in Grade 3, starting with the 2015-2016 school year. Glen Avenue has capacity for the additional students. Chipman would become a pre-kindergarten-grade 1 school with more room for prekindergarten classes, and the school would begin to transition to the Charles H. Chipman Early Learning School.
The school system says they will continue working with schools and others in the community to explore possible solutions, and to explore ways of balancing enrollment among all of Wicomico's schools.
If you have further questions or would like to voice your input, contact comments@wcboe.org or 410-677-5251.
