- April 24, 2024
-
-
Loading
Loading
Flagler Schools’ grade level arrangement extends elementary school through sixth grade, and has only the seventh and eighth grades in middle school.
But capacity pressures may prompt the district to shift to a K-5 elementary school and 6-8 middle school grade arrangement, although the change wouldn’t take effect until the 2022-2023 school year.
The district’s elementary schools and high schools are over capacity, while middle schools have limited space, school district Coordinator of Planning and Intergovernmental Relations Patricia Bott said during a March 23 School Board workshop. Shifting sixth graders into the middle schools, in concert with an overdue rezoning, could help, Bott said.
“Where we’re at right now, we would definitely need to rezone to balance out enrollment,” Bott said. That would be necessary regardless of how the district shifts grade levels, Bott added — just moving sixth graders to middle schools without rezoning could just convert the district’s elementary school capacity problems into middle school capacity problems.
At the urging of School Board member Colleen Conklin, district staff looked at the possibility of switching to a K-8 instruction model, but didn’t recommend it.
Although students in K-8 schools do seem to show a slight increase in performance, a district staff member said, it’s likely not enough to make a significant difference in Flagler County or to affect the district’s school grades and would entail other costs, such as monitoring to keep the older students separated from the youngest ones.
Staff members recommended that the district move to a K-5th-grade elementary school and 6-8th grade middle school model.
School Board members will vote on the proposal at a future board meeting. If they approve it, the district will work to ensure that neighborhoods aren’t divided in the rearrangement or zoning shift, district staff members said.
