By Crystal Hayduk
The Chelsea School District Board of Education continued its discussion about the possibility of opening enrollment to non-resident students at its meeting on June 11.
(Board members Greg Rhodes and Dana Durst were absent.)
Superintendent Julie Helber introduced the topic during the information and discussion part of the meeting, reminding those in attendance that the district has held informational meetings with key communicators, civic groups, and senior populations. Administrators also were available for two mornings last week at Biggby Coffee to answer questions from interested people.
In summary, Chelsea is the only school district in Washtenaw County that is not open to School of Choice. In 2018-19, the district lost $1.1 million in lost revenue because 147 students chose to attend school elsewhere. (See related article here: https://chelseaupdate.com/chelsea-superintendent-of-schools-julie-helber-presents-school-of-choice-option/.)
“It boils down to fiscal responsibility and a philosophical stance,” said Helber.
Helber said that some people believe that students who enter a district through open enrollment may not have similar academic or behavioral standards, but through a combination of personal experience and research, she has found that is not the case.
Incoming students’ “academic scores often outperform” the resident students’, she said. The families of students who choose to attend a school place a high priority on education and have the ability to navigate the system and provide transportation.
Addressing plans for open enrollment, Helber said she does not recommend attaining maximum class sizes, but instead opening at least one spot per grade level to help level the numbers of students and maintain teachers at their grade levels.
Since the current round of discussions began, the district has received emails both for it and against it.
Helber received an email from one person who was concerned about increased traffic flow. “We do have traffic flow issues all around our school buildings…. [The parents] would have to bring their [School of Choice] children. This is something that has to be considered,” she said.
Kristin van Reesema, Tammy Lehman, and Shawn Quilter brought questions to the superintendent that they had received from community members.
Q: What are the district’s plans for the additional revenue obtained from the state for open enrollment students?
A: Maintain staff, restore previous staff concessions, and possibly add programming.
Q: Would the children of employees who reside outside of the district still be permitted to enroll?
A: Yes, in accordance with the current district policy.
Q: What is the method to determine the number of seats available per grade level?
A: Look at past enrollment numbers and project an estimate. It will not be 100 percent accurate because it is unknown how many students will move into the district in the near future.
Q: Once a student is accepted, what then?
A: Once a student is accepted, they are permitted to continue until graduation. They are required to complete paperwork annually. Additionally, if the student has siblings and there are openings at the siblings’ grade level, those siblings will be given preference in order to keep families together.
Q: Why did you say at least one opening at all grade levels? We thought the emphasis was on the lower grade levels.
A: Although the focus is on the elementary grades, it would be nice to allow older siblings to attend Chelsea if possible, to keep families together. This would be a board decision.
Q: Would Chelsea open to only county residents or contiguous counties?
A: There are policies at the state level for both options, but it is a board decision. Helber would propose both due to Chelsea’s proximity to Jackson and Ingham Counties.
Despite previous presentations, based on communications to the board, it seems as if the public does not feel that they have been included in the district’s decision to open enrollment to non-residents.
The district published information in Chelsea Update here and in The Sun Times.
Q: What is the benefit to Chelsea families if the district opens to School of Choice?
A: Extra revenue will help to maintain or expand programming and staffing.
Q: What are the caps on class sizes?
A: The caps are currently set, and we’re in bargaining right now. We can look at putting a cap on open enrollment to a limited percentage of the entire student body. A district can close to School of Choice at any point.
Q: We know that state funding is questionable. We also know that some new housing developments are coming, but we don’t know when or how affordable they will be to young families. Can you address the fear that things will just keep on growing?
A: We want to grow enough [with new resident families moving in] to reopen the Pierce Lake school building. There will be a phase at some point where class sizes will creep and there will be a transition to being able to open that building. We hope to make that as seamless as possible. It will have to be balanced carefully, because it would be inefficient to open a school at minimum capacity.
“I realize that open enrollment is a big decision for the Chelsea School District,” said Helber. “I do believe that we have a lot to offer – wonderful teachers and programming, great administrators, and a supportive community. I think we can share that with other people.”
Five community members expressed concerns and asked questions during the two opportunities for public input.
Ryan Barney said that he hopes that before the board makes a final decision on open enrollment that they will seek the opinions of community members. He said his family chose to relocate to Chelsea last summer for the quality and size of the school district. “There’s a reason people live in Chelsea,” he said. Barney believes that School of Choice would allow people to take advantage of the district’s positives without a bigger commitment to the community.
Cathie Timberlake suggested the board hold community open houses to share specific plans and solicit feedback, since many people are uncomfortable with attending board meetings. She also believes that financial relief will come, so suggested caution and thoughtfulness about the decision.
An unidentified speaker said she would be interested to know why students leave the district, and what new programs the district plans with the increased revenue from School of Choice.
Matt Hillis moved to Chelsea a little over two years ago in order to be in the school district and is against open enrollment. He questioned checks and balances for the administration of the program in the distant future. He encouraged the board to give the community a voice in the decision-making process.
Zoe Proegler said that her understanding of School Choice is that it was to be an option for students in struggling districts to seek a better education elsewhere. However, parents with means removing their children from struggling schools has contributed to the severe degradation of the schools most in need, she said, citing 2017 reports that Michigan schools are the second most segregated in the country.
“As we’ve established here today, there’s a hesitancy to open an unlimited number of seats,” said Proegler. “We’re not going to solve that problem with at least one student per [grade]; and if we’re not going to solve the problem, I don’t see why we should also contribute to it by opening more seats for wealthy … parents who could remain in their districts to help improve their own schools.
“To stand up and say we’re not going to contribute to the problem of deep and racialized inequity in Washtenaw County would be a message to other school boards,” she said.
The public is welcome to contact board members with questions or opinions. Contact information is at https://sites.google.com/a/chelsea.k12.mi.us/schoolboard/.
The school board is expected to vote on School of Choice/Open Enrollment at its next meeting on June 25.
