Parents Against Ocean Springs School Realignment

To:  Ocean Springs School Board

“Parental & Community Concerns Regarding Consideration of
Elementary School Realignment Within the Ocean Springs School District”

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We, the undersigned, are concerned parents and residents of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, who are adamantly opposed of the Ocean Springs School Boards consideration of realigning our Lower Elementary Grades
(K-4) to consist solely of two grades per school.

Changing the existing structure will result in the abolition of the Neighborhood School.


PARENT & COMMUNITY CONCERNS:

1. Forcing elementary school children to start at a new school every other year is unreasonable and excessive. Children at this age need stability.

2. The negative academic and social effects of frequent school transition is obvious and has been established by research, yet the school district's response is a simple "life is transition."

3. Many siblings would never attend elementary school together under the realignment plan. In addition, the parents of those students would no longer be able to focus their involvement on one school.

4. The bus needs with this proposal have not been assessed by the school district. Currently, all elementary students on a bus are transported to one school. Travel time will certainly be longer if each bus is required to drop off these students at each of the three school buildings. Presently there are children who board the bus before 6:30 a.m. Furthermore, would siblings no longer ride the bus together?

5. Realigning the elementary schools would NOT make them less crowded.
* Instead, why not consider re-drawing the school boundary lines, which does ease overcrowding?
* Classrooms are going to be added to Pecan Park and Magnolia Park Elementary by the next school year.
This will reduce the crowding anyway.
* Additional money could be sought for the construction of a fourth Elementary school, which would give relief to the overcrowding problems.

6. The new federal law, NCLB (No Child Left Behind), requires school districts to be accountable to its students. If a school that receives Title I funds fails to make AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress, which is a state standard) as set out by Mississippi standards for two consecutive years, then the federal law gives parents the right to "school choice." In other words, the parent can move his or her child to another school in the district that has performed better.

Under the district's proposed plan to realign the grades, there would be no right of school choice.

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Sincerely,

The Undersigned

The Parents Against Ocean Springs School Realignment Petition to Ocean Springs School Board was created by Concerned Parents & Community of Ocean Springs Schools and written by Lonnie D. Root.  This petition is hosted here at www.PetitionOnline.com as a public service. There is no endorsement of this petition, express or implied, by Artifice, Inc. or our sponsors. For technical support please use our simple Petition Help form.

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