Two Groton School Redistricting Options On Table

The Groton school department on Saturday posted two possible redistricting proposals to consolidate its middle schools and correct a racial imbalance in Catherine Kolnaski Magnet School.

The plans were posted on the school department website. Superintendent Paul Kadri will outline the options to the Board of Education at 5:30 p.m. on Monday in the Town Hall Annex.

The first option

The first option would send students from Charles Barnum Elementary, Northeast Academy Elementary, and S.B. Butler Elementary to Cutler Middle School. Students from Mary Morrisson Elementary, Pleasant Valley Elementary, Claude Chester Elementary and Catherine Kolnaski Magnet School would attend West Side Middle School.

Both middle schools would have about 515 students.

At the elementary level, the redistricting plan would add about 100 students at S.B. Butler to free up space at Claude Chester and allow it to take in full-day kindergarten classes from Catherine Kolnaski.

The idea is that by freeing up space in the magnet school, the district would lower the percentage of minority students and bring the school into compliance with state racial balance rules.

At a glance

Highlights of first option are listed below:

• S.B. Butler would expand its boundaries to pick up students from Midway Oval, who now attend Claude Chester. The size of S.B. Butler would increase by about 100 students.

• Charles Barnum and Northeast Academy would have nearly the same boundaries as today.

• Mary Morrisson would add Winding Hollow condominiums, switch some areas with Pleasant Valley and now have military and city students. It would increase by about 30 students.

• Pleasant Valley would have the same enrollment, but boundaries that are more contiguous.

• Catherine Kolnaski would send three or four full-day kindergarten classes to Claude Chester for one year, lowering its enrollment to the low 400s and reducing class size. When the kindergarten students moved to first grade, they would return to Catherine Kolnaski.

• Claude Chester would lose its students from Midway Oval, take in the kindergarten classes from Catherine Kolnaski and see its overall class sizes reduced.

The second option

The second option would follow the same pattern for feeding elementary schools into middle schools.

But with this plan, West Side would end up with 507 students, and Cutler would end up with 525. Redistricting at the elementary level would be different.

At a glance

Highlights of the second option are listed below:

• S.B. Butler would expand its boundaries to pick up students from Midway Oval, who now attend Claude Chester. The size of S.B. Butler would increase by about 100 students.

• Charles Barnum would pick up military students from the northeast boundaries of Pleasant Valley, but would otherwise stay nearly the same.

• Northeast Academy would have nearly the same boundaries as today.

• Mary Morrisson would add Winding Hollow condominiums, switch some areas with Pleasant  Valley and now have military and city students. It would increase by about 20 students.

• Pleasant Valley would lose the community in the northeast corner to Charles Barnum, but pick up students further south in the city. Enrollment would drop by about 40 and the boundaries would be more contiguous.

• Catherine Kolnaski would give up some areas to Claude Chester on the west side, which would lower enrollment to about 445 students.

• Claude Chester would lose students from Midway Oval but pickup students from Catherine Kolnaski.