TAMPA, Fla. — A special Hillsborough County School Board meeting is set for Thursday, requested by Superintendent Addison Davis.
The meeting comes after a vote last week to delay a vote on boundary changes the superintendent says are needed to eliminate overcrowded schools and save the district money.
What You Need To Know
- Special Hillsborough school board meeting set for Thursday to discuss ongoing issues with school boundaries
- Board members have debated as many as three options that would affect more than 20,000 students; Superintendent has introduced a 4th plan that would impact 15,000 students
- PREVIOUS STORY: Vote pushed back on Hillsborough schools boundary changes
- Officials with Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS) are looking at four scenarios that would involve changing boundaries and repurposing schools
- PREVIOUS STORY: Hillsborough Superintendent on boundary changes: 'Doing nothing is not an option'
Several public meetings earlier this year had parents debating three options for boundary changes that would have affected a varying number of students.
Superintendent Davis then proposed his own “Option 4” which including the shuffling of 15,000 students at a cost savings of around $12 million a year.
The school board failed to approve Option 4, setting up Thursday’s meeting for the superintendent to talk with board members about what more they need to make a decision.
School Board District 3’s Jessica Vaughn pushed for a slowing of the boundary change process, and tells Spectrum Bay News 9 any cost savings from a boundary change could be counteracted if parents aren’t happy with the decision.
“We need our students in the classrooms, that’s what provides our funding,” said Vaughn. “So if we have a whole community who are “choice-ing” out because they are unhappy that we changed their school, is that financially responsible in the long run? What are the savings vs. the possible losses?"
Superintended Davis has said it is imperative the school board make a decision on boundary changes soon, but no time table is set on when the board could vote to approve a boundary change, or when it would take effect.