On Dec. 14, the School Board approved middle school boundary adjustments to create an attendance zone for the new middle school at the Stratford site. The boundary adjustments will become effective for the 2019-20 school year when the middle school at the Stratford site opens to relieve crowding and better balance enrollment across all middle schools.

After the Superintendent’s recommendation was presented on Nov. 14, the proposal was revised by the School Board to reassign the Jefferson planning units 24100 and 24111 to the new middle school at the Stratford site. Families of students affected by the new boundaries will receive notification in the mail by February 2018. Beginning in the 2019-20 school year, all students in sixth through eighth grades will attend their newly-assigned middle school.

The boundary recommendation aligns with community input that placed priority on having close proximity to the neighborhood school. At Kenmore, Swanson, Williamsburg, and the new middle school, more than 50% of middle school students will be eligible to walk to school, strengthening efficiency by increasing the number of potential walkers.

In its motion to approve the boundary adjustments, the School Board also directed the Superintendent to include in the Annual Update in the fall of 2018 recommendations or possible program moves, new programs, and boundary refinements as necessary to ensure that all middle school facilities are fully utilized. The Update will also include a plan to enable transfers among APS middle schools.

The approved boundary adjustments move 84 planning units (or approximately 1,545 students), out of a total of 346 units, with 61 of those planning units being assigned to the new middle school. As a result of the adjustments, all APS middle schools are projected to be under 111% capacity by the 2022-23 school year.

For additional information, visit https://aps2016.apsva.us/engage/middle-school-boundary-change.