School District Preps For Enrollment Shifts

The is preparing itself for a potential enrollment shift as a variety of significant housing developments work through the city approval process.

According to district Superintendent Jan Christensen, a demographer has been hired to study how the district's enrollment may change over the course of coming years.

And though she did not directly attribute buying the study to the potential impact of proposed development on the district, more than 600 housing units could be coming to Redwood City over the course of the coming years.

The , , and housing projects are expected to contribute to the population of Redwood City growing to nearly 90,000 residents by the year 2030, according to city planning director Blake Lyon.

And to further the trend, Christensen said that the school district has experienced steady enrollment growth since her tenure began six years ago.

Yet though the enrollment projections from the demographer's study are not finalized yet, Redwood City School District trustee Alisa MacAvoy said it is fair to expect that the district will see more students in the future.

But she said that regardless of how the enrollment may fluctuate, the philosophy of school leadership will not change.

"Our job is to educate every child that comes to us," said MacAvoy.

She said the district has considered making changes such as adding onto existing buildings and rearranging school campuses in order to accommodate future growth.

Developers proposing to build housing in Redwood City are required to pay the school district impact fees, which the administration can use to pay for such improvements.

Lyon said that the city and school district staff work closely to ensure that both organizations are on the same page regarding projects that may have overlapping impact.

"We have worked on several projects with the school district, and always have enjoyed a solid relationship," he said.

School districts have the opportunity to make comments regarding differences of opinion with the city on development proposals during the required environmental review process.

And Lyon said that to his knowledge no such action has been taken on any of the major pending residential projects.

Christensen said that the district has elected to take action into its own hands by who are charged with analyzing results of the demographer's study and making policy recommendations to the board of trustees and administration based on their findings.

She also said that the committee will also survey local community members and find what sort of popular school programs, such as Spanish language immersion classes or offerings for academic overachievers, should be considered for expansion.

The district will begin making policy decisions of that nature following submission of the demographer's report in March or April, said Christensen.

But as the district's enrollment has increased over the course of previous years, and may continue to in the future, Christensen said she believes this is a positive reflection the local community's feelings about the public school system.

And though MacAvoy acknowledged that limitations may exist in the abilities of a demographer to project enrollment shifts, she said it is the responsibility of the district to prepare to the furthest extent of its ability.

"All we can do is use our best professional judgment on making those decisions," she said.

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