Neighborhood Schools
Updated June 13, 2007
I don't work in New Castle County.
Does the Neighborhood Schools Bill affect me?
It could. It requires that the other K-12 districts may (they don't have to) also
submit neighborhood school plans - changing feeder patterns and/or grade configurations
- and, if approved, each district will receive $350,000 to implement them.
What about the four New Castle
County Districts?
The law requires that each of the four New Castle County Districts develops a Neighborhood
Schools Plan.
The four districts have submitted their plans. Red Clay and Christina have been
told to rework and resubmit.
Red Clay has said that its magnet
schools and charter schools offer families multiple choices in all sections of its
district.
Christina's lack of an approved Neighborhood
Schools plan was the reason why Judge Leo Strine agreed with the City of Wilmington
that Christina cannot close up to four of its inner city schools (June 2007). Doing
so would leave several neighborhoods in the city with no elementary schools. The
district has announced that it will not appeal this ruling.
The law also required the City of
Wilmington to develop and submit a plan, which it did in 2001. Actually, the City
sent two plans to the General Assembly for its consideration, but the General Assembly
took no action.
In brief, the City recommended:
1. Keeping the four school districts in the city while creating a consortium
of five charter schools
2. Creating a city-wide district bordered by the Brandywine River which would
keep Brandywine and Red Clay in the city, but eliminate Christina and Colonial.
In other words, it would eliminate bussing for students in Christina and Colonial
as well as the bus rides out to suburban Christina and Colonial for city students.
Background
In the year 2000, the General Assembly
passed the Neighborhood Schools Act (HB300).
It required the four northern New
Castle County School Districts - Red Clay, Brandywine, Colonial and Christina -
to submit by November 15, 2001, to the State Board of Education for review and approval.
Once approved, these districts would receive a $1.25 million appropriation to implement
their plans - a plan whereby students will attend their closest school while in
grades K-5. Districts would then have 18 months to implement them.
The other K-12 districts were not
required to, but they could also submit neighborhood schools plans - changing feeder
patterns and/or grade configurations - and, if approved, receive up to $350,000
to implement them.
As noted above, it also required
the City of Wilmington to submit its recommendation for implementing Neighborhood
Schools within the City limits, given that four school districts currently have
schools in the City.
The Neighborhood Schools concept
has been implemented in many cities which are no longer under court superivison
of their desegregation efforts. Supporters of Neighborhood Schools seek to eliminate
long bus rides and speak of increased parental involvement.
Questions? Contact Ann Case , policy analyst to the State
Board of Education via e-mail or by phone at 302-739-4603.
If you'd like to read more about
education policy regarding the concept of Neighborhood Schools, low-income schools
and what has happened in other cities, check out the >
Neighborhood Schools policy
brief from the University of Delaware's College of Human
Services, Education & Public Policy. If you have an opinion,
click here to contact your
state legislator.