MANCHESTER, NH — The Board of School Committee’s Special Committee on Redistricting wants to hear from members of the community who have ideas for solving the school district’s redistricting challenge. Anyone with a plan is encouraged to submit his or her proposal to redistricting@mansd.org no later than noon on July 12.
The Special Committee on Redistricting, chaired by Leslie Want of Ward 4, was formed in March and has gathered details about building capacities, enrollments, and current uses of building space. All of that information is available on the school district web site, under the “Redistricting” main menu tab.
Each redistricting proposal considered will be measured against a set of goals established by the committee. Among them, to eliminate overcrowding of schools and address the underutilization of some buildings; to eliminate portables; to implement a plan with benefits that outweigh potential disruptions to families; and to ensure that the final plan meets the educational needs of all students in Manchester.
The most recent meeting on June 30 included the presentations of five plans and a discussion of their pros and cons. Five more plans will be presented on Tuesday, July 19, including two chosen from submissions by the public. That meeting will be held at 5 p.m. in the community room of the Manchester Police Department on Valley Street.
The ten plans will be narrowed down to four, then two by the end of next month based on how they fit into the redistricting goals. The special committee will continue to invite input from the public and school district staff throughout the process; community forums on the final plans will be conducted in the fall, after October 1. Any redistricting plan will be put in place for the 2017-18 school year.
Agendas, meeting minutes, documents and other updates from the Special Committee on Redistricting can be found here.
