Glen Ellyn District 89 Wants New Attendance Map To Draw Line On Surging Enrollment

GLEN ELLYN, IL — Officials in Glen Ellyn District 89 have agreed that a new attendance map is the best way to curb rising enrollment in the district. The next challenge is agreeing on a timeline for implementing the proposed changes.

The Superintendent's Boundary Committee unanimously backed a proposal to redraw boundaries for four neighborhoods and shift the preschool from Arbor View to Brian Glen for the next school year, according to the district's website. Fourth graders would be grandfathered in to finish up their last year of elementary school.

Another proposal, propelled by input from concerned parents, involves keeping all kindergarten through fourth grade students enrolled in the school they're in until they've completed elementary education. The district website states that children who have not yet begun school would not be grandfathered in and would go to schools within the newly drawn boundaries.

If the proposed boundary changes go into effect, the following neighborhoods would shift:

• International Village students move from Park View to Arbor View
• Canterybury Woods students move from Westfield to Arbor View
• Glen Park Estates students move from Westfield to Arbor View
• Arboretum Estates students move from Westfield to Arbor View
• Four preschool classrooms move from Arbor View to Briar Glen
• One specialized classroom moves from Brian Glen to Westfield

These changes were spurred by a recent uptick in enrollment in District 89 schools. The district reports that enrollment increased dramatically in the past five years. In the 2012-13 school year, 1.968 students were enrolled in the district's middle school and four elementary schools. That number shot up to 2,192 this school year, which reflects an increase of 11 percent. The school board hired a professional demographer to study population trends and he predicts that the number of students in the district will continue to increase significantly.

A Boundary Committee made up of 12 parents and staff from the district's four elementary schools, along with two board members will continue to work in an advisory role to the Board of Education as they finalize how to draw the proposed boundaries.

District 89 will hold a community discussion about the proposed boundary changes on Wednesday, Oct. 25 at 7 p.m. at Glen Crest Middle School, 725 Sheehan Ave., Glen Ellyn.

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