The Middleton-Cross Plains School District Board of Education unanimously approved its open enrollment seats for the upcoming school year during its Monday, Jan. 24, meeting, with board member Bob Green absent.
During a meeting earlier this month, Assistant Superintendent of Operations, Lori Ames, educated the board regarding the pros and cons of moving forward with open enrollment.
Currently, MCPASD has about 42 spaces available in Elementary.
- 4k - 12
- Kindergarten - 11
- First - 4
- Third - 5
- Fourth - 10
While this offers families in surrounding areas of Middleton a chance for their child to attend our schools at the Elementary level, families would need to reapply at the middle school level because spots are limited.
"We already have middle schools that are very close, if not at capacity already," said Ames. "So to automatically assume that the spaces would be available to these families at the middle level is a concern."
MCPASD has seen a declining enrollment because of the pandemic and hasn't recovered quickly. The goal of having open enrollment seats is to fill gaps where there is space in classrooms without adding additional teaching staff.
However, Ames believes that the district will see an uptick in enrollment as time passes.
Board Member Gail Shepler had some concerns regarding the transition from elementary to middle school, stating that it can already be hard on a student. This policy to have parents reapply could force them to move back to their area schools if there are no spaces available.
If our district receives more applications, then there are spots available, then students would be chosen through a lottery process. There are no open spots for special education open for the 22-23 school year.
Communication is forthcoming regarding open enrollment.