School choice changes would be revolutionary
If Rock Hill Superintendent Kelly Pew’s proposals for expanding school choice programs in the district are adopted, attendance patterns in the district will be completely different in the near future. And that could be good news, especially for those who believe that allowing students more choices regarding their education is essential.
Pew has been working with parents, teachers, community leaders and members of a school choice committee since September to develop guidelines for the proposed changes. Pew presented a basic outline of those proposals to the committee, educators and members of the community last week.
The central tenet driving this effort is the belief that all children should have an equal chance to be accepted into a choice program. The district currently can’t guarantee that.
While the district has an array of choice programs, it does not have the capacity at some of them to admit all the children who want to be in the program. In several cases, neighborhood students who are zoned to attend those schools limit the number of spaces for students who want to take advantage of choice programs there.
Rock Hill now has seven elementary and two middle schools with choice programs. Programs include foreign language immersion, the arts, International Baccalaureate and STEM programs, which cover science, technology, engineering and math.
Students who want to be in those programs must apply and go through an admissions process. In addition to problems with finding spaces for all those who apply, some of the programs, such as language immersion, aren’t continued at the middle- or high-school levels, blunting the effectiveness of the program.
Pew’s approach would revolutionize the system from top to bottom. One option for the language immersion programs would be to consolidate them in a newly constructed building, possibly on the Sullivan Middle School campus. Or the district could build a new elementary school dedicated to language immersion, which also would have space to help accommodate long-range enrollment growth.
Pew will ask the district to consider increasing the number of students in the elementary gifted and talented program, and establishing a middle school gifted and talented program. She also would relocate the Montessori program for younger students and look at expanding existing fine arts and performing arts programs.
And to ensure that children would have access to the programs in which they want to enroll, Pew is talking about providing a district-wide busing service.
Pew and those who have contributed to this plan are not just tinkering around the edges. These are bold and comprehensive proposals that would drastically change the way students, especially those in elementary and middle schools, would be taught.
Families would be given significantly more latitude to decide where their children go to school and what curriculum is emphasized. Many more students would have access to the special programs offered by the district, and many of those programs would extend from kindergarten all the way through 12th grade.
School board members are not likely to vote on the plan until at least Feb. 22, and changes would not begin to be implemented until the fall of 2016. That leaves time for the board – as well as the rest of the community – to carefully review these proposals.
While there are many details to be considered, we agree with the basic goal of expanding access to choice programs, providing continuity in the programs through middle and high school, and offering transportation to students who otherwise would not be able to take advantage of the programs.
Educational processes are rapidly changing, and efforts such as this help ensure that Rock Hill will be ready to adapt in the years ahead. We appreciate the work so many people have put into this plan and the breadth of these proposals.
This story was originally published January 12, 2016 at 5:34 PM with the headline "School choice changes would be revolutionary."