The greater Crofton/Gambrills/Odenton area went through the redistricting process due to the construction of a new elementary school on Nantucket Drive. The new Nantucket Elementary School will open in August 2008. The children who will attend are: the entire Walden community who previously attended Crofton Elementary and all students living on the east side of Route 3 who previously attended Four Seasons Elementary. All students from Nantucket Elementary School will then continue on to Crofton Middle School and Arundel High School. The official County website has information about the 2008-2009 school feeder system for the greater Crofton area and the Nantucket Elementary School webpage.
The webpage you are currently reading summarizes the redistricting process for Nantucket Elementary. Starting in 2006, the CES PTA Legislative Committee prepared the community for what was to come by auditing other redistricting proceedings to have a better understanding of the process, hosting a Redistricting Forum with County representatives, issuing summaries and FAQs, and encouraging community discussions. In the Fall of 2007, a redistricting committee was formed by Anne Arundel County, with two representatives from every school in the affected area (Crofton Elementary, Crofton Meadows Elementary, Crofton Woods Elementary, Four Seasons Elementary, Piney Orchard Elementary, Waugh Chapel Elementary, Arundel Middle, Crofton Middle, Arundel High, and South River High). Data on student enrollment was collected in September from each of the affected schools. Following weekly public meetings in October, this Redistricting Committee voted on boundary recommendations that were submitted to the Superintendent in November. In December, the Superintendent made his recommendations to the Board of Education. In December 2007 and January 2008, redistricting was discussed during Board of Education meetings. By the end of January, the BOE had voted to take two Gambrills-area proposals to public hearing. A public briefing in February explained the proposals, and the Board of Education held a public hearing in March to gather community input. The Board of Education voted on redistricting in April and named the school in May. All approved redistricting plans take effect for the 2008-9 school year, which begins in August 2008.
Spring 2006 - Frequently Asked Questions
A list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) was mailed to all CES families in Spring 2006.
September 2006 - Redistricting Forum with Anne Arundel County
On September 25, 2006, the Crofton Elementary School PTA hosted a public information night for more than 200 people in the greater Crofton-Gambrills area. During this Redistricting Forum, community members heard information and asked questions of representatives from Anne Arundel County Public Schools. The Legislative Committee then compiled and published highlights of the forum.
January 2007 - Summary
The CES PTA Legislative Committee summarized
summarized the redistricting information thus far, including redistricting Seven Oaks and plans for the new elementary school.
September 2007 - "Redistricting 101"
All CES families received a copy of
Redistricting 101, a summary of the redistricting process thus far. (PDF, 18KB)
September 27, 2007 - Redistricting Committee Meeting
- Minutes of the September 27 Organizational Meeting of the Redistricting Committee (PDF, 12K download)
October 8, 2007 - Redistricting Committee Meeting
- PTA Legislative Chair's Minutes of the October 8 Redistricting Committee Meeting (PDF, 14K download)
- Handout at the meeting: Pin Map of Crofton Elementary student locations, available in
PDF document (155K)
or
the original high-definition JPG file (large file warning: 1.5Megabytes)
October 15, 2007 - Redistricting Committee Meeting
- PTA Legislative Chair's Minutes of the October 15 Redistricting Committee Meeting (PDF, 13K download)
- AACPS's summary of the October 15 Redistricting Committee Meeting
October 22, 2007 - Redistricting Committee Meeting
- PTA Legislative Chair's Minutes of the October 22 Redistricting Committee Meeting (PDF, 16K download)
- AACPS's summary of the October 22 Redistricting Committee Meeting
- Corrections to The Capital newspaper article on the October 22 Redistricting Committee Meeting (PDF, 12K download)
October 29, 2007 - Redistricting Committee Meeting
At this final meeting, the Redistricting Committee voted on proposals presented at the October 22 meeting regarding the new elementary school boundaries, middle school assignment, high school assignment, and reallocating elementary school use west of Route 3. The options and page numbers used below reference the AACPS recommendations summary (large file warning - 15.5Mb).
The Committee made the recommendations below to the Superintendent.
"Option A" of the proposals for elementary boundaries (page 2):
- All students who live in Walden will move from Crofton Elementary School to the new elementary school on Nantucket
- Other than Walden students, all current students at Crofton Elementary School will remain at Crofton Elementary School
- All students who live east of Route 3 and currently attend Four Seasons Elementary School will move to the new elementary school on Nantucket
"Proposal 2 as amended" of the proposals for reallocating students in the Waugh Chapel Road Corridor (west of Route 3) (page 19, amended):
All students who live west of Route 3 and currently attend Four Seasons, Waugh Chapel, Piney Orchard, and Odenton Elementary Schools will remain at those schools with the following exceptions:
- Students who live on the eastern end of Strawberry Lane (from Waugh Chapel Road to Porcelain Tile Court) will move from Piney Orchard to Four Seasons
- Students who live between Old Waugh Chapel Road and the railroad tracks will move from Piney Orchard to Four Seasons [UPDATE: this item was removed from the proposal by the Superintendent]
"Proposal B" of the Middle School Subcommittee proposal for middle and high school assignment (page 7):
- All students attending the new elementary school on Nantucket will attend Crofton Middle School
- All students attending the new elementary school on Nantucket will attend Arundel High School
December 5, 2007 - Board of Education Meeting
The superintendent, Dr. Maxwell, presented his recommendations to the Board. His recommendations were exactly what was voted on by the Citizens' Redistricting Committee except that the small strip of students along Old Waugh Chapel will remain at Four Seasons.
Several other groups also submitted proposals.
Proposal from a group of Piney Orchard parents entitled "West Side of Route 3 Alternate Redistricting Proposal" (and voted to go for public hearing):
- Communities of Chapman Farm, "West Walden," and "Townes of Walden" would attend the new school
- "East Walden" would stay at Crofton Elementary.
Proposal from a group of Crofton Meadows parents:
- Community of "East Walden" would move to Crofton Meadows Elementary.
Proposal to change high schools:
- All students who live in the "Crofton Triangle" would attend South River High School, regardless of what elementary school they attended.
The Board listened to public testimony on these and other issues.
January 9, 2008 - Board of Education Meeting
The Board of Education voted to take Dr. Maxwell's recommendation to public hearing. This proposal was substantially the proposal crafted by the Citizens' Redistricting Committee, outlined above:
January 23, 2008 - Board of Education Meeting
The topic of redistricting was not on the agenda, although it was discussed during the Public Participation section of the meeting. No member of the Board of Education brought forth any new proposals to be considered for public hearing and no member of the Board of Education asked for a special meeting between now and January 31st. This means it is highly unlikely that any other proposals will be added and brought to public hearings. The Superintendent's recommendation and the Piney Orchard proposal stand as the only two proposals currently going to the public hearings that affect the greater Crofton/Gambrills/Odenton area.
The dates for public briefing and/or public hearing have not been set. Once they are available, we will publish them [UPDATE: Public hearing on February 19 at 7pm at
Four Seasons Elementary School,
and public hearing on March 4 at 7pm at
Arundel High School.]
February 19, 2008 - Public Briefing
AACPS held a Redistricting Briefing at Four Seasons Elementary School in Gambrills.
At this briefing, Mr. Chuck Yocum (410-439-5683) provided the community with clarification as to what redistricting options are being considered by the Board of Education. No public testimony was taken at this briefing. For details about the three redistricting plans covered at the briefing, see the main Legislative Committee webpage. The next meeting will be a Public Hearing on March 4.
March 4, 2008 - Public Hearing
- Summary:
AACPS held a Redistricting Public Hearing at Arundel High School in Gambrills.
At this hearing, members of the community gave 3-minute testimonies before the Board of Education. Citizens spoke for and against the three proposals on the table: the Superintendent's Proposal, the West Side of Route 3 Alternate Redistricting Proposal, and the redistricting of the Cobblestone at Farmington Village community (unrelated to the new school on Nantucket).
- Minutes of the March 4 Public Hearing by the AACPS Board of Education (PDF, 10K download)
March 5, 2008 - Board of Education Meeting
- Summary: Redistricting was not discussed. Other topics included the middle school schedule.
- Minutes of the March 5 Board of Education meeting (PDF, 11K download)
April 16, 2008 - Board of Education Meeting
The BOE voted in favor of the Superintendent's recommendation for the east side of Route 3, meaning that the entire Walden community will be redistricted to the new Gambrills-area Elementary School, then continue on to Crofton Middle School and Arundel High School. The Board also voted in favor of the Superintendent's recommendation for the west side of Route 3.
May 14, 2008 - Parents' Meeting
Parents of students who will be attending the new elementary school met at Arlington Echo. The primary purpose was allowing community members to give input on the naming of the school; the suggestions and results of an informal ballot were submitted to the Board of Education. A representative from the National PTA also spoke about the steps needed to form a PTA for the new school.
May 21, 2008 - Board of Education Meeting
The BOE voted to adopt "Nantucket Elementary School" as the name for the new elementary school on Nantucket Drive in northern Crofton.
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