HOPEWELL, NJ - Hopewell Valley Regional School District is redrawing attendance zones for two elementary schools starting in the 2026-27 school year, and the district has outlined exactly which students will be affected and what families can do about it.
The plan, dubbed "Fit for Success," focuses on the Bear Tavern and Stony Brook attendance zones, which are closest to new housing developments and are already experiencing crowding. About 84 students will change schools under the plan.
A demographer's report completed in October 2025 identified the drivers behind the growth: local birth rates from 2021 to 2023 hit their highest levels since 2009, home sales in the district area spiked 20 percent during the pandemic, and new housing developments have already brought more than 200 new students to the district. An additional 250 students are expected when construction at those developments is complete. Of approved housing units still awaiting construction, 72 percent fall within the Bear Tavern attendance zone and 27 percent in the Stony Brook area.
Under the plan, 34 students near Lambertville-Hopewell Road and Route 31 who currently attend Bear Tavern will shift to Hopewell Elementary. Another 50 students in new developments will also change schools: all students from Hopewell Parc — 22 of whom are currently assigned elsewhere — will move to Bear Tavern, and 28 students living at The Collection at Hopewell will shift from Stony Brook to Toll Gate.
After the rezoning, Stony Brook will need three fewer classrooms in 2026-27 and two fewer in 2027-28. Bear Tavern will need one fewer classroom in each of the next two years.
Here's what families need to know: students entering fifth grade in 2026-27 may stay at their current school if families provide transportation — but parents must notify their building principal by May 21. Students with IEPs, English language learners, and siblings of students with special needs may also remain at their current school. No bus routes are expected to be longer under the new plan.
The redistricting is less extensive than it might have been because voters approved a 2025 bond referendum funding additions at Bear Tavern and Toll Gate. District officials have said the expansions reduce the scope of redistricting but do not eliminate the need for it.
Enrollment at Bear Tavern and Stony Brook is projected to grow by nearly 13 percent over the next five years. Questions can be directed to redistricting@hvrsd.org.
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