At its Tuesday meeting, the Monroe County Community School Board approved its priorities and goals for 2024-2025, which included socioeconomic rebalancing and redistricting.
The board voted in April to consolidate Childs and Templeton Elementary schools to balance socioeconomic status between them.
MCCSC's Interim Superintendent Markay Winston provided an update on the process Tuesday. She said the Monroe County school district will publish updates on Templeton-Childs merger plans to a homepage over the coming year, starting this week.
Read more: MCCSC approves Childs-Templeton merger, appoints interim superintendent
This year, the district will evaluate both school facilities, collect data and information on school mergers, and hold more than 30 engagement meetings.
“Those are the three big components," Winston said.
At the center of those pieces, is a comprehensive merger plan.
"We intend to have a written comprehensive plan as to how we will do this implementation effective for the 2025-2026 school year.”
Winston said she and an administrative planning team created a project charter, with expected deliverables– like staffing plans and associated costs and a schedule for transitions for teacher, students, and staff.
She said community engagement will be key to determining the outcomes of a successful merger. But factors that will be out of the project scope include redistricting options and discussion of whether the merger should or should not happen.
"That decision has already been made," she said. "So it's important for us to be aware of what's in scope and what's out of scope."
The first community engagement meeting for the merger is happening this week with the Monroe County Education Association.
Winston said her team will meet monthly with an advisory group established through Childs and Templeton administrators. And she will update the MCCSC board during its monthly meetings on progress.
"So very aggressive plans within a short period of time, but we feel as if it's reasonable enough for us to be able to accomplish that."
In a separate update following the merger information, Winston said a business MCCSC has hired has provided drafts of potential attendance redistricting maps.
Winston said work for potential redistricting options is in beginning phases, and she will update the board on its progress at the August meeting.
