BY BERNIE MIXON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
GREEN TOWNSHIP -- The Oak Hills Local School District Task Force on Redistricting will hold the first of two meetings Monday night to revisit the district's redrawn school boundaries.
The purpose of the meetings will be to answer any lingering questions about the plan, approved earlier this year by the Board of Education, and to let parents know where their children will attend school next year.
"All we want to do is give individuals who were not at the board meeting or did not receive the redistricting plan the ability to do that," said Steve Owens, committee chairman.
Under the current concept, the district's five elementary schools house students in grades kindergarten through 6, and two junior high schools have students in grades 7 through 9, while grades 10 through 12 are at the high school.
As part of the redrawn boundaries, about 150 elementary school students will be moved to new schools in the 1999-2000 school year. Sixth-grade students will be shifted to the junior highs -- which by then will be middle schools -- as will Rapid Run Middle School, now under construction. Ninth-graders will go to Oak Hills High School.
The changes would take place just as Rapid Run Middle School and an addition to Oak Hills High School are finished.
A series of meetings with staff and the community were held to discuss redistricting. Crowding at schools and class size were among the concerns.
As a result, the redrawn boundaries -- affecting Springmyer, Oakdale and Dulles elementaries -- should keep class sizes to about 25 or fewer students.
Since the plan was approved, the district has received calls from people curious about where their children will attend school. Others were from people looking to move to the district.
Although boundary issues have been all but settled, transportation issues still must be addressed, Mr. Owens said.
The meetings will be broken into sections that include a summary of the redistricting report, review of attendance maps and time for question-and-answer sessions in small groups.
"People will be able to come to this meeting and know when they leave what school their kids are going to," he said.
