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Thursday, September 13, 2007
Following the ups and downs of school growth?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
News has been a little confusing for followers of schools in the South Gwinnett area.
First there was a report that student enrollment for the South Gwinnett cluster of schools — as well as the county as a whole — was less than the county projected.
Then, a breakdown showed that South Gwinnett schools have a high number of trailers this year. AJC Story: Overcrowding puts students in trailers
I was curious how these things went together, and also, how they match up with building plans for county schools.
I’ve learned a few details.
Not only did the South Gwinnett cluster not grow as much as was expected this past year, it didn’t grow at all. It lost students.
The student count last week showed that the only South school with an enrollment higher than last year’s is Snellville Middle School, and that was only by 7 students. Collectively, the cluster dropped by 206 students from last year to this year.
That gap is narrowed as students continue to enroll, but it marks a distinct change for the area.
(A quick note: A school cluster is a high school and the middle and elementary schools that feed into it. South Gwinnett’s cluster includes South Gwinnett High School, Snellville Middle School, W.C. Britt Elementary, Norton Elementary and Magill Elementary.)
As for trailers, South schools have the second highest number of any cluster in the county. (Central Gwinnett had the highest.) Compared to last year, South’s schools also had the highest net increase in trailers of any cluster in the county.
So enrollment has gone down but trailers have gone up?
Yes, but it’s not that simple, I’m told.
Because of the lower enrollment, not all trailers on school campuses around Snellville may be needed this year. Of those that are, some are used for special programs offered at the schools. Class size also affects the number of trailers, school officials said.
South’s schools are overcrowded, however. They are over their capacity by 1,765 students.
Rosebud Elementary — a new school set to open next year in the South cluster is expected to offer some relief, particularly for Norton Elementary, said Sloan Roach, a spokeswoman for Gwinnett County Public Schools.
A new middle school, set to open in 2010 will further ease conditions.
Also, an addition at South Gwinnett High School in 2011 and a new elementary school in 2012 have been identified as needs, though funding has not been approved, Roach said.
Elsewhere in the county, far more is on the drawing board. Gwinnett County is aggressively working on not only new schools, but three new clusters of schools,
The new Archer cluster will relieve Grayson and Dacula. The new Lanier cluster will relieve North Gwinnett, and a new Mountain View cluster will relieve the Mill Creek, Collins Hill and Dacula schools. There is a long list of building projects for those areas.
School officials have said they want to look at how the struggling housing market has affected growth in Gwinnett. At this time, they don’t think the enrollment dip in the South cluster indicates a trend.
“Our forecast still calls for growth in the South cluster,” Roach said. “That said, we update our forecast each year to make adjustments based on the current year and changes in growth patterns. Our planners typically do that analysis in February. At that point, we would have a better idea on any changes to our forecast.”
Do you think the South Gwinnett school cluster will see continued growth? What about other Gwinnett school clusters?
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