Redistricting plan could close three elementary schools

Richmond's J.B. Fisher Elementary School is out of the way for many of the city's students, but it's not out of the sight of school efficiency planners.

Much to the surprise of parents at the South Richmond school, Fisher is on a short list of schools that could close if city educational leaders opt for any three of the four plans suggested by a citizen committee studying rezoning and enrollment patterns.

Summer Hill Elementary School is slated to close in all four plans, and some combination of Fisher and John B. Cary elementary schools could be shuttered, too, in the series of options offered by a committee that is taking the first citywide look at school zones in decades.

Enrollment options at Bellevue, Fox and George Mason elementary schools could change, too, though those schools would remain open.

The inclusion of Fisher, tucked away in a quiet part of the city south of the James River and west of Stony Point Fashion Park, has caught the attention of parents who had never considered the possibility their school might close.

"I know there are some parents who are on the (rezoning) committee, but as far as understanding the process, I can't say (the school system has) done anything to make people understand the process," said Rose Crews, the mother of two students at Fisher.

That should change starting tonight, when the school system hosts the first communitywide meeting to spell out the options.

"We'll see what the community wants," said Andy Hawkins, the finance chief for Richmond Public Schools.

He said the idea was to allow the committee, which was formed last fall and includes 40 citizens with a broad range of backgrounds, to study school zones, enrollment patterns and population trends before unveiling a formal plan.

The only direction the committee received, Hawkins said, was to "find ways to better utilize our buildings." He said the panel was not told to consider school closings, but it was not told not to, either.

The inclusion of Summer Hill was because its students could be absorbed easily into two neighboring schools that are being rebuilt, Broad Rock and Oak Grove. They're slated to open in January, and the Summer Hill students would move over in the fall.

With an enrollment of 210 students, Cary is the least-utilized elementary school of the 27 in the city, and its inclusion wasn't a surprise.

"We want to make our zones truly neighborhood schools," Hawkins said. "And second, we want to better utilize our buildings.

"There's a perception that we have more space than we need," he said. "We're going to clear that up."

Don Coleman, the School Board member from the 7th District, said the process was a must for a variety of reasons.

"We haven't done this since the 1970s," he said. "The reality is our demographics have changed."

He also cited the need to make the most of existing facilities, especially in a budget environment where the school system is asking the city to make up a nearly $24 million deficit in funding for next year.

Hawkins said the two new elementary schools will hold about 650 students each, and it's logical to think the city would move to that enrollment level, especially if it can build additional schools in coming years.

"I don't think it's optimal to have it that way," he said of schools with 200 to 300 students. "It's better to have fewer, larger schools."

At Fisher this school year, the enrollment started at 322 students, which put the school at about 74 percent of its functional capacity. That ranked the school 22nd of the city's 27 elementary schools.

Kristen Mullins, who has two children at the school, said a sense of community attracted her to Fisher — she lives in the neighboring Southampton zone — and that she hopes the School Board opts against closing the school. "I'm hoping we can get out there and help them find a better solution," she said.

Her chance comes tonight, when the rezoning team shifts gears from information gathering to information sharing. At least five more meetings are scheduled before May 21, when the committee is set to make a presentation to the School Board.

"I'm trying to keep the emotion and the politics separate from this," Hawkins said. "The School Board will handle that when the time comes. Right now, I need to have a good plan to take to (the board)."