LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) could be changing the way your child attends school with a new school choice proposal.
That proposal, released on Monday, is an alternative to the current student assignment plan which has not been changed in nearly 40 years. The district said they believe families should have a say in where their child attends school based on community feedback received.
Under the Dual Resides plan, it would give families a choice of attending a middle and high school close to home or attending a designated school in another part of the county.
It would also help west Louisville middle and high school students who don’t have an option of schools close to home and sometimes given alternatives that could be more than 10 miles away.
"The onus of diversity has been placed on the shoulders of students in west Louisville," Superintendent Dr. Marty Pollio said Tuesday.
Parent Nicole Coggins said her children are an example of the plan's potential impacts. Right now, they live in west Louisville, but have to attend Valley High School. It's a system Coggins herself was familiar with.
“They have to get up at 5:30 every morning," she said. “When I was in high school, I literally lived down the street from Central. “I had to get up at 5:30 in the morning too and I would be dead tired.”
JCPS said students would be able to attend a new middle school in west Louisville and the Academy at Shawnee for high school if the Board approves the plan.
They believe this proposal creates opportunities including increased family engagement, helping improve attendance, a student’s sense of belonging and them staying with peers throughout their school experience.
"When a student or family raises their hand and says 'I want to attend a school for a certain reason,' it automatically increases the sense of belonging," Pollio said.
The district said the plan would also increase access to magnet schools in which they can apply along with transfers and network schools.
The plan also earmarks millions of dollars for improvements at the district's highest-needs schools.
"We will have something built-in automatically, higher teacher pay, higher principal pay, smaller class size, more counselors," Pollio said.
Students will also be able to apply for magnets, transfers and network schools.
However, these changes would likely take place during the 2023-2024 school year for incoming kindergarten, 6th and 9th-grade students, in a phased roll-out. JCPS said other students will be able to stay at their current schools.
Coggins said her own kids won't make the cut, as they are already in high school. She wishes the changes had come sooner, but said she's hopeful they'll be impactful for future generations.
"When you don't have that access, when your school is far, when you have to work two or three jobs it all adds up," she said of the strain of the current system.
JCPS will give parents the opportunity to hear the proposal in full detail at a public forum beginning March 22 at 6:15 p.m. at the Norton Healthcare Sports and Learning Center.
The Board will also have a community information session during their March 29 meeting at the Academy at Shawnee.
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