1. education
2. school

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April 27, 2015
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Community Dialogue #2
Results Report
3325 Hilliard Rome Road
Hilliard, Ohio 43026
P: 614.798.8828
f: 614.798.8839
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Acknowledgements & Introduction
On Thursday, April 16, 2015, two Community Dialogue #2 meetings were held at the Tuscaloosa Career and Technology Academy; one at
9:30 am and the other at 6:00 pm. The purpose of the community dialogue conference was to obtain input and feedback regarding the
concepts presented that will set the parameters for planning school facilities of the future in the District. The concepts w ere developed in
conjunction with the steering committee, district personnel, along with the results from the 1st Community Dialogue.
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A questionnaire was distributed to obtain input from the attendees regarding various educational framework topics. There were a total of 64
group respondents and 676 individual respondents [211 paper and 465 web]. The pages that follow outline the responses to the
questionnaire as well as all applicable comments.
Board of Education
DeJONG-RICHTER
Tracy Richter, REFP, C.E.O.
Ann Hoffsis, REFP, Director of Enrollment Projection Services
Matt Sachs, GIS Project Coordinator
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Lee Garrison, Board Chair
James Minyard, District 1
Earnestine Tucker, District 2
Norman Crow, District 3
Cason Kirby, District 4
Harry C. Lee, District 5
Marvin Lucas, District 6
Erskine Simmons, District 7
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DeJONG-RICHTER would like to thank the Tuscaloosa City Schools Board of Education for the opportunity work with the community in creating
a Facility Master Plan that will help define the District’s facility-strategy over the next several years.
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q1: Please rate your level of support for Concept A (10 being the highest, 1 being the lowest)
Group
Individual (Paper & Web)
204
30.8%
1
10
19.6%
2
40
6.0%
2
2
3.9%
3
38
5.7%
4
34
5.1%
5
75
11.3%
6
37
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1
7
13.7%
4
6
11.8%
5
14
27.5%
5.6%
6
7
13.7%
44
6.6%
7
3
5.9%
8
42
6.3%
8
2
3.9%
9
38
5.7%
9
0
0.0%
10
0
0.0%
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10
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3
110
16.6%
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q2: Please rate your level of support for Concept B (10 being the highest, 1 being the lowest)
Group
Individual (Paper & Web)
176
26.6%
1
5
9.6%
2
40
6.1%
2
2
3.8%
3
50
7.6%
4
40
6.1%
5
91
13.8%
6
52
7
43
8
63
9
38
2
3.8%
4
6
11.5%
5
11
21.2%
7.9%
6
5
9.6%
6.5%
7
9
17.3%
9.5%
8
5
9.6%
5.7%
9
5
9.6%
10
2
3.8%
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10
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1
68
10.3%
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q3: Please rate your level of support for Concept C (10 being the highest, 1 being the lowest)
Group
Individual (Paper & Web)
229
34.9%
1
8
15.4%
2
28
4.3%
2
5
9.6%
3
48
7.3%
4
41
6.2%
5
84
12.8%
6
52
7
36
8
59
9
32
6
11.5%
4
4
7.7%
5
16
30.8%
7.9%
6
3
5.8%
5.5%
7
4
7.7%
9.0%
8
3
5.8%
4.9%
9
2
3.8%
10
1
1.9%
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10
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1
48
7.3%
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q4: Please rate your level of support for Concept D (10 being the highest, 1 being the lowest)
Group
Individual (Paper & Web)
282
42.7%
1
9
18.4%
2
36
5.4%
2
4
8.2%
3
23
3.5%
4
26
3.9%
5
50
7.6%
6
30
7
37
8
46
9
30
3
6.1%
4
3
6.1%
5
9
18.4%
4.5%
6
5
10.2%
5.6%
7
7
14.3%
7.0%
8
5
10.2%
4.5%
9
2
4.1%
10
2
4.1%
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1
101
15.3%
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q5: Please rank the concepts in your preferred order; 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th. Use each number only once.
Individual (Paper & Web)
2
3
4 (last choice)
Concept A
210
127
138
173
Concept B
127
248
211
59
Concept C
108
191
224
121
Concept D
199
79
68
304
1 (first choice)
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1 (first choice)
2
3
4 (last choice)
12
11
18
6
Concept B
16
19
9
2
Concept C
9
10
20
9
Concept D
17
4
6
19
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Concept A
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q6: Please choose your preferred concept as they are compared to one another.
Individual (Paper & Web)
Concept A
Concept B
Concept A OR Concept B
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353
Concept A OR Concept C
325
Concept A OR Concept D
360
282
270
368
274
339
300
Concept C
Concept D
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Concept C OR Concept D
Concept B
Concept A OR Concept B
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34
Concept A OR Concept C
16
Concept A OR Concept D
19
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Concept A
Concept B OR Concept C
29
Concept B OR Concept D
24
Concept C OR Concept D
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317
368
Concept B OR Concept D
Group
Concept D
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Concept B OR Concept C
Concept C
28
24
15
19
21
7
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Individual (Paper & Web) Comments
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1 mega high school. University Place Middle should go in with Westlawn Middle if we go with that option. It doesn't make sense to bus them over the river when
they are so close to WMS. Please see drawing on table 7's group questionnaire.
1) Forcing us to make choices like this is so problematic. How do we make decisions without knowing the costs involved? Also, it seems like this entire exercise is
about moving bodies between buildings and schools? BUT EDUCATION IS MORE THAN A FACILITIES MOBILE! it is about curriculum and instructional resources and
equity and equal opportunity, Schools are not shells. They have a history! they build community! Sometimes they are an anchor to the community. The way this
"dialogue" has been organized is like a multiple choice test!!!! IT IS NOT DIALOGUE! playing with permutations and combinations is not thoughtful/critical thinking
around systems wide change. I am sorry and disappointed as a parent, a community member, and as a scholar in education.
1. Whatever the plan, sell the magnet land for financial support, but preserve IB. 2. Have an IB program at one location for 1-12. 3. Strengthen IB to help recruit/
retain (new) residents in public schools. 4. None of the current high schools meet or exceed expectations; that is unacceptable.
1. K-12 IB in one building (Central HS). 2. No sharing of facilities with IB additions. No STEM/Magnet combination. 3. Two high schools (with the K-12 option stand
alone) would help diversity. 4. Three middle schools allows for greater use of resources. 5. Pre-K all around is open to all.
1-12 IB School on it's own that would allow opportunity to expand and have more people city wide attend. Why can't we stay in the current Magnet School building and add 9-10? I am concerned about schools within schools. I understand the idea of sharing resources, but coordinating things like the cafeteria, gym, and so
forth seem like a logistic nightmare. I don't see how you can have a "small school environment" when you have schools inside of schools. If there is going to have
to be consolidation, I would make one school with one administration. For example, combining Northington and Arcadia into one new school. Also, I am concerned about the lack of Performing Arts options at the High School level. Now that we have this beautiful facility at Alberta and will be hiring staff, do we just put
these children back into regular high schools after 8th grade? Or are we feeding them to ASFA in hopes that they will get in? If you are going to audition and have
a 6-8 Performing Arts school, it would seem to make sense to provide continuity for High School.
2 HS concept is ideal however, the plan needs to be revised and presented with multiple options for consideration.
6-12 is an awful decision on placing kids together. What's the purpose of having a Pre-K center if Pre-K is inside of every school?
A - problematic because Northridge will be overcrowded from the beginning, in a part of town that is still growing. Does not make any sense. I do agree that Rock
Quarry Middle needs to be moved. A-B-C - All call for the 6-12 IB to be a program at Central. Not one representative at the morning meeting could explain to me
how this would work. I have a 6th grade IB student, and I would NEVER send her to a school where she would be sharing a cafeteria, gym, etc with Central (or
Northridge or Bryant) high school. Especially when the younger group would be such a small percentage of the school. D- I like this best, but that is not saying
much. I love the idea of 2 larger high schools. But , the IB students are scattered across 3 different schools. Not acceptable. And TCTA is not central in the city. I
made this point during the TCTA Planning phase, so apparently someone did not agree. But perhaps this contributes to its current underutilization? MAJOR POINT:
Obviously I am a major proponent of the IB schools. The Magnet Elementary & Middle Schools have made great strides. However, initial plans for growth of the
programs were put on hold due to the tornado, and have never been readdressed. The Middle School has suffered attrition due to a lack of commitment to grades
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Individual (Paper & Web) Comments
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9&10, as well as students being left out of organized school sports. I can testify that when you send a magnet child back to their "home" zone middle school, they
are not fully included by the teachers there who do not know them. It is a bad situation. And the current plan has the IB students as an "add-on" to Central. IF this
district truly wants to be considered excellent, it MUST have a strong IB program. That is the world today. And NOT ONE of the current plans will provide a strong
program. It is frankly being set up to fail. The clear, best solution in my mind is to have an IB SCHOOL (1st-12th), not merely an IB program. The middle years need
to be expanded , and the high school will grow. These kids need their own home, not to feel like visitors in other school buildings. I am confident that this is an
investment that would pay off in innumerable ways. I took a major leap of faith when I left Verner for Magnet. Many long time Tuscaloosans tried to warn me
that the school board likes to start "pet projects" and not follow through. I have up to now been thrilled with my decision. I like to hope that when this process is
complete, I will still feel just as proud of my school and my district. Thank you!!
A larger high school environment will provide opportunities for students to be better prepared for college and socially work with larger classrooms and life skills.
Students need to experience athletics, fine arts, and other events within school a a large scale to be ready for life in a large real world
A new concept to find one facility to house the magnet program K-12 grade. This program does not need to be changed. Instead to be enhanced so that it is one
continous program. The magnet program has earned the Blue Ribbon honor showing the importance to the community.
A number of key points in response to the material presented: 1) All decisions need to be made with a specific focus on decreasing racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities across the system (while addressing the reality that many families will only feel comfortable sending their child to a school where they are
safe and do not feel like too much of an "other," e.g., make decisions informed by research on "tipping points," or proportions that are likely to retain a diverse
range of families). 2) Great programming will draw families from all backgrounds! Strong curricula and school communities are far more important than buildings! I hope these factors are kept at the forefront of all discussions and decisions. This process should take a good look at which curricula/programs within TCS
are currently exciting students to learn and creating strong & diverse school communities, and then look at ways to expand those curricula/programs district-wide,
rather than focusing just on re-drawing lines and moving students around various buildings. Buildings are an important reality, but should only be one piece of the
discussion. 3) Tuscaloosa Magnet School is truly a shining star for the TCS system (especially in relation to both 1 and 2 above). I have spent considerable time in
all of the Tuscaloosa City and County schools. Tuscaloosa Magnet School is the only public school in Tuscaloosa County in which I have observed diverse representation of a range of racial/ethnic and SES groups (in a way that feels equal, not separate), high excitement for learning, strong parent involvement, and a very
strong sense of school community. All of the 4 concepts proposed are very likely to erode the great things going on at Tuscaloosa Magnet School. If this happens,
it will hurt all of TCS (not to mention UA and other employers). A far better scenario would be to expand the school to 1-12 (or better yet, K-12) and increase the
overall enrollment, especially at the middle and HS levels, so that more children from across the district can have access to the excellent IB curriculum and projectbased learning. If 2 large HS's are formed and TCS is forced to sell the current location of TMS, the current Central High School location could house a K-12 IB/
magnet program and serve a much greater number of students than at present, with fewer administrators needed (1 principal and IB coordinator, with assistant
principals serving specific grade levels). It would also alleviate some pressure from the 2 large high schools, which would soon be at/over capacity based on the
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Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Individual (Paper & Web) Comments
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data provided. In order to reduce the sense of inequity felt from folks outside the magnet school, TCS should take a close look at what is working so well at the
current magnet school and try to incorporate these practices at other schools, so that they are available district-wide, not just to a select group. A system the size
of TCS should be able to have several other schools with diverse SES and racial/ethnic populations like TMS has currently and be able to offer strong curricula/
programming at all schools. 4) The recommendation to have separate schools (with overlapping grade levels) within one building should be eliminated! This does
not work well for anyone and runs the risk of furthering inequity/separateness, which our town desperately needs to avoid. 5) Children benefit from stability and
having as few major transitions as possible during their early years. Please keep this in mind when deciding upon locations and grade level configurations, and also
in trying to allocate new school lines in a way that is likely to be retained for many years to come. 6) Feedback on this process: while some intriguing proposals
have certainly been put forth, the 4 concepts should have been laid out more clearly laid (and accurately) and shared with all constituents at least a week in advance of the community dialogues, in order to truly allow for informed consideration and discussion. The way it has been done seems quite sloppy, last minute,
unprofessional and/or that seeking input from the public is mostly just a formality.
A, B, C are way too similar to be able to differentiate. D seems like the only plan that starts to desegregate the system again. What would be the possible benefit
of having 2 schools in one building? Made no sense to anyone at my table.
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Achieving racial and socioeconomic balance across the schools in the district is important. Spreading resources evenly around the district is important. If combining
neighborhood elementary schools into larger schools is the way to get full time art and music, and possibly even languages, to all of the children, then that is what
should be done. I do not think two schools under one roof is viable. If schools are combined, then they need to be unified under a single administration. No more
"choice" districts. With the two high school model, socioeconomic and racial balance are more likely to be achieved than any of the three high school options. In
each of those, one of the high schools is located in an affluent area and there is much resistance to transporting students from other areas into the school. This just
doesn't work!
After spending so many dollars building three new high schools not that long ago, it seems that we should use these three very nice facilities as high schools for
many more years in order to get our money out of it. Building two new high schools seems like a monumental waste of funds which the city has been accused of in
the past by the community. I believe this vote is pivotal to the survival of our city schools. I would also advocating selling TMS and building a new RQMS near NHS.
Please consider option C Thank you!
All concepts are horrible! My children are a forced minority. They are learning very vulgar things in first grade! We need a choice option for every student. My children are being set up to be failures. A Kindergarten teacher lied to prevent one child from going to magnet school. This year, we were told there was no space
available. We need to overhaul the teachers, make teachers change schools. Most are too comfortable to do their job. Staying out of the classroom, watching
movies, screaming, throwing things, and picking on white children!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
All concepts have problems. Neither concept will lead to diversity. Some combinations will lead to more students on free/reduced lunches and poor test scores in
one building. Schools in Western Tuscaloosa have already been through numerous changes.
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Individual (Paper & Web) Comments
All four of these proposals will not yield positive results for student achievement. These proposals are a facade. The money that went into just these proposals
could have provided schools with resources that would have addressed a small part of the inequity issue of the district. When you analyze these proposals, it is
obvious that our families of color will be the most impacted by closures and consolidations. These proposals are concerned with the "extra room" that exists within
the district. That extra room could support initiatives that will make a difference in student achievement. These proposals also fail to recognize the research about
the benefits to students having a connected elementary and middle school. Being on the same campus, is what is best for students and the transition between
schools. The proposals also fail to recognize the strengths of each school. Best practice would be to use the strengths of the district to improve student achievement, not ignore them to consider just space. Those faces (not spaces) of teachers and students is what builds a strong, high performing district. High performing
districts build a community around positive relationships. They make decisions considering what is best for kids. They have true open communication and allow
families to speak at community meetings. A group of teacher leaders in the district could have worked to make a stronger proposal that would impact students
positively. I urge you to consider the partnerships, grants, initiatives currently taking place in many of these schools. Outdoor classrooms are just as powerful as
those on the inside. The schools with trails, amphitheaters, gardens offer a unique and necessary outdoor space for learning. The district needs to consider the BIG
picture. Even though I had to rank these four possibilities, please know I am not is support of any of them. Please realize when you close or combine schools, the
awards, identifications, grants, cannot be transferred to a new entity without going through proper channels. For instance, a Blue Ribbon School will lose it's
award, if the school is under another name.
All of the rezoning, building, changes will be for nothing if money isn't spent to hire quality principals and teachers. There must be a way to move the complacent,
ineffective teachers out of the system and bring in highly educated (which in large part means importing them from out of state) teachers and principals. The quality of teachers and principals is extremely poor; they are dedicated but in large part they just don't have the skill set needed. In the middle schools and high
schools there needs to be an open and honest conversation about the number of students not working at grade level and place them in remedial courses instead
of sweeping it under the rug and placing these student in "regular" classes. It's a crime when a true regular student, who works at or slightly above grade level cannot be placed (per teachers and counselor recommendations) in a regular class because the regular class is so low level. You can build and rezone and shuffle but
if there isn't a concerted effort to bring in better teachers and principals then we'll be back in the same place but with shinier buildings.
All proposed educational goals are great. Stepping back from the academics and looking at the family, family participation and transportation: proximity for access
is particularly critical for some parents. The transportation times for Plan A and Plan D might increase for students and parents. Considering utilizing facilities efficiently and effectively, Plan B seems to best meet all requirements.
All these concepts are still wasting money.
Alternative education (Centralized, localized, centrally). Special Education - severe and profound - less likely to work with general ed population, major concern.
Additional facilities (?). Closed small sites.
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Individual (Paper & Web) Comments
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Although I am in favor of "C" overall, but the idea of all of the parents from RQE and Verner driving across the bridge to middle school would cause a logistics nightmare all the way down Rice Mine from the entrance to RQE to the bridge and even down to Northridge Rd. The best option of the four, in my opinion, would be to
have option "A" but not have Southview Elem feed into Northridge HS, instead have Alberta Elem feed into Northridge HS for added diversity without the enrollment that Southview has. Southview is also a lot closer to Bryant HS, therefore decreasing the commute for students & families in that area. Northridge's overcrowding compared to the other city high schools would be better if a smaller elementary school such as Alberta fed into it vs Southview.
An elementary school serving over 800 students at one facility is not the best environment for that developmental stage. Large numbers of this particular age
group can be hard to supervise and control. Smaller schools, closer to the residents who attend is the more conducive environment.
Any concept seems beneficial to the students. However, I believe it is important that the state funds to move the magnet school and oakdale's gardens to the new
locations. It is imperative that students have that resource to learn outside the classroom. These schools have already spent about $12,000 each to have these gardens and to not move them would be horrible.
As a parent of a Magnet School child I feel very strongly that they should get to keep their current school. I feel that keeping all grades of the Magnet School together gives them the best chance to succeed. These children and their parents have worked hard to be at this special school and we all have a sense of pride and
ownership of it. I feel that separating the children or making them share space with other schools would be damaging to the program as a whole. WE HAVE
WORKED HARD FOR THIS!! LET US KEEP IT AND OUR BUILDING! side note : I have heard some talk of consolidating schools but them being different entities, if
you are going to make schools share a building they should be one school with one name so everyone can feel pride and take ownership of it. Having pride in your
school is where the learning begins!
As an IB Magnet School parent (both Elementary and Middle), I am concerned that all current plans split the IB program up between two campuses. I believe that
splitting the programs geographically will negatively impact the continuity of the curriculum, and be unnecessarily costly. The current building could easily house
all grades, and the central location of the school is appropriate for a program with enrollment from all neighborhoods. I am also concerned about the concept of
housing grades 6-8 on a high school campus. I believe it will be socially uncomfortable and isolating for those younger kids.
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As an IB parent, I would prefer to see IB combined under one school. I would also like to see athletic programs offered at the IB rather than sending kids back to
their home schools. I think the IB schools need to remain centrally located in the city since they draw from the entire population.
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As much as I appreciate the opportunity to voice my opinions and concerns on all of the concepts, I think the Board and all others involved directly with developing
the plans have already decided the route they are going to take with the system, thus my voice doesn't really matter. Thanks
As the only teacher who has taught every single year in our IB program, I strongly believe that the IB program has outlived its effectiveness. Since CHS was divided
into 3 high schools, we have not had a single student who has earned the IB diploma (before the split, approximately 85% of our IB students earned the diploma,
including ALL 20 of our seniors in the CHS Class of 2000). A few students have earned college credit by passing IB exams since the split, but VERY FEW ----- in fact, I
am virtually certain that more CHS students earned college credit through dual enrollment at Shelton State THIS YEAR than all IB students combined have done
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Individual (Paper & Web) Comments
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since the split. The International Baccalaureate is indeed a wonderful academic program, but CHS is now far too small (Note that when CHS had nearly 3,000 students, the largest class of IB seniors was that Class of 2000, when we had 20). Besides being terribly ineffective at CHS, the IB program is also very expensive, both
financially and academically. I believe that if we eliminated the IB program and channeled those resources into a greater investment in dual enrollment, a very
significant percentage of our students could graduate from high school with at least a year's worth of college credit.
B and C make sense geographically. Need 2 Pre-K centers. Plan for growth of north area in high school capacity.
B or C equally really. However, more people that live in University Place district go to private school anyway. However the ideal conept would be A but move
Southview/Skyland to Bryant and Alberta to Northridge. University Place moves to Central.
B vs C - C pulls UPMS out of the mix with Rock Quarry & Verner - I feel those schools NEED the added diversity. Plan A involves building a new middle school north
of the river - why, when we have facilities like the magnet school campus that can serve as a middle school. I also don't feel like plan A addresses the need for
more diversity in the middle & high schools as well as some of the other plans. I like D - you can tell it's the more expensive of the plans, but it seems that it shakes
up the entire system and does a better job of mixing the populations. I like the idea of moving the middle schools onto the high school campuses - that solves
many issues I was hearing about RQMS not having field space. I can see the benefit in creating a K-12 IB school - which was not on the plan. I'm terribly disappointed that the STEAM program, as it currently exists at UPES, will not continue. STEAM is VERY different from STEM - you need that project based learning to
continue and the emphasis on the arts. If those two things will continue to happen, I can support it.
Best to keep IB elementary and middle schools together.
Board should maximize the sales revenue opportunity with Magnet School. Maybe consider making renovations and then ask UA for $30-35 million. Would be a
great influx of money for our schools. With two children at the magnet school and a potential third student in 2017, concepts A-C need to be looked at more
closely, when you have a facility that serves to different curriculums it is a difficult proposition, example being when Univ Place was Montessori and regular at the
same time. What is the timeline? Will the 9-10th IB bridge be offered at Magnet Middle until the new concept is put into place? I have a six grader so I am very
curious about the timeline
Build two new high schools? Where? Bus students over 45 minutes to an hour in that large geographic area while the other school has such a small area. Two of
the four options have RQ students moving to a school that has been around for years while these children are yet to get their own new middle school while
Westlawn, Southview, UPM, and Eastwood children all received new middle schools. Laughable that Tuscaloosa City would build five new high schools in the 21st
century. Can't wait for the national story on that.
Building 3 new high schools is a waste of tax payer money. Put tax payer money into more teachers. Teachers make the difference. Ratio makes the difference.
Who came up with these ridiculous options?
C- is a great concept but 1,000 in an elementary school is too much. 3 schools together = too much.
C is acceptable but keep Woodland Forrest; Like the 1-5 magnet school option at upes; 6-12 at central high school
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DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Individual (Paper & Web) Comments
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Combination of B and C. Like the B magnet plan and keep Woodland Forrest.
Concept A actually makes the most sense ONLY IF southview middle feeds into Bryant High and Central High thus solving the overcrowding problem at northridge
High School. Concept A is my first choice if this can be done.
Concept A- I like that RQMS has a new school. However, I don't think it makes sense for Southview Middle to be a "feeder" school to Northridge High School. Also,
NHS would still be overcrowded. Concept B- I like the "feeder" schools for Northridge High School. However, I do not believe that the Magnet School Property
will house all of the athletic facilities RQMS would need. Concept C- Same as B Concept D- I like the idea of two larger high schools, pooling together more resources. However, I worry that the northern area of the city is growing at a greater capacity and the lines would have to continually change. My proposal: Move
RQMS to the current Northridge High School and add more feeder elementary schools, such as Alberta (not Skyland), and move the magnet school to the old
RQMS facility. Build a new Northridge High School. Rezone Southview Middle to Bryant or Central High School.
Concept A is merely a stop gap for existing system (and national shame). Concept B is slightly better but does prevent the issues that re-emerge with plan. Concepts C and D show innovation but will require money. WIll there be any state and local support financially? Will there be federal support? In terms of two school
in one, what will be done for morale, school spirit, etc? However, I like the idea of equalization of resources and lessen the issues of self-esteem associated with
current schools. It also makes the school reflect the intent of post-Brown world and not a 1915 Jim Crow system.
Concept A is the only one to me that makes financial and logistical sense. I do understand that some elementary schools need to be closed and consolidated due
to low numbers, but please remember that the teacher to number of student ratio at the elementary level should really be 1 to 15 or less. This provides a better
learning environment particularly for the K-3 group where learning basic skills is so crucial. Also, Concept A is the only scenerio that does not move Rock Quarry
Middle across the river away from the majority of the kids' homes and community. I do realize that University Place Middle students will be traveling but there are
only around 100 of them compared to the 400+ coming from Rock Quarry. Transporting UPMS to a new Rock Quarry would mean less buses and gas needed. We
are trying to save money, right? Also, RQMS has had to suffer over the last years with a less than adequate facility, actually a horrible setup while Southview, Eastwood and a brand new Westlawn have had nice facilties meant for middle schoolers, not a one hallway middle school. I believe that new boundaries for schools
needs to be drawn, particularly the high schools which shows Northridge with 300+ more students that Central or Bryant. We need to put more money into our
classrooms and into hiring more teachers so that class sizes will be smaller. No class should be over 25 to 27. Let's appreciate the teachers we do have also. Let's
put more money into the classrooms; get the teachers what they need. There is so much needed in the schools.
Concept A starts out with live-in 1,288 vs. capacity of 1,1170 for NHS. I do not like this plan. It starts out Day 1 with overcrowding NHS. All these concepts disband
the current IB program which has been very successful as a school. With TMSE and TMSM working together with a shared identity even with seperate administration. Please consider putting IB K or 1-12 in one building and adding seats to move good use of the building and program. The IB program benefits the system and
the community and should be promoted and protected. If the re-zoning grows sports, then that would be feasible as well. Concept D divides the IB program cen-
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ter to IB curriculum. The IB grade divisions are K-5, 6-10, 11-12. It also appears financially unfeasable to build 2 new high schools. I like the idea of moving IB 6-12
to Central if and only if the building is altered to provide separate cafeteria and gym spaces.
Concept A would be my number one choice, IF and ONLY IF Southview students are fed into either Bryant High or Central High. As it is written, it does not solve
the overcrowding at Northridge High School. Why should students who live right next door to Bryant High School be bussed to the furthest high school from their
house, overcrowding one high school and leaving the other 2 high schools way under capacity? The demographics of the schools does not bother me at all, diversity is very much welcomed in all fashions; race, socioeconomics, academics. So, disregarding my previous answers on the 1st 6 questions, Concept A would be my
first choice IF the numbers are distributed more evenly. Also, I would think the Tuscaloosa Magnet School property is very valuable, so that should be sold instead
of putting nearly 1000 kids all going to a school requiring the use of bridges that already get backed up every morning and afternoon. It makes more sense to pull
traffic to the outskirts of town that pushing them all inward causing severe traffic delays.
Concept A would be the best choice with a small change. Concept A could be improved even more with Southview Middle children attending Bryant High and adding children from Alberta to the Rock Quarry Middle and Northridge Feeder system. Based on the numbers listed in the District Data Information handed out at the
Community Dialogue, this would increase the need for using the current Magnet school building or building a New Middle school to allow for 232 Alberta Elementary School Students along with the already 457 Current Rock Quarry middle school students. The overcrowding at Northridge High would be positively impacted
by this as well. Concept B addresses the capacity issues at each high school and middle school but will create some pretty significant traffic problems trying to get
620+ children from the Rock Quarry area across the river through an area that is already having significant traffic issues trying to cross the river. Bringing children
from Alberta and University Place Elementary schools to a new Middle School north of the river seems like a better solution. Locating the Rock Quarry Middle
School at the Tuscaloosa Magnet School until a New Middle School is constructed could be a temporary solution if the City of Tuscaloosa can help with the traffic
issues. Concept C Seems to move the overcrowding High School issue from Northridge to Bryant. Concept D looks good on paper but when the properties are
identified for 2 High schools it will be very likely that either the students from the Western side of the region or students on the North eastern side of the Northwest High School will be traveling a great distance and time to get to school. It would also seem that reducing the number of high schools would also reduce the
number of kids who will be able to participate in each activity, ie. high school bands, debate teams, sports teams. Just looking at the high school football teams, 2
High School teams = 22 players on the field. 3 High School Teams = 33 Players on the field. While all of the Concepts seem to address a lot of different problems,
some tweaking is needed in each one to make them work. I appreciate the opportunity to voice my comments and be part of the future of Tuscaloosa City Schools.
Concept A: worst - Northridge is overcrowded from the begining. Bad idea. Concept A-C: I need more info about the IB on Central campus plan. I will not send my
middle school child to Central if they are sharing a cefteria, gym, etc. Concept D: very interesting. But IB kids are scattered all over town. Not a fan. I would like to
see a 1-12 IB school. I do not want IB to be a program but a school. Not merely an add-on to other schools.
Concept C completely destroys the eastern cluster by exceeding capacity and adding and elementary schools with 1,000 students. Recommend new Concept of D
utilizing Northridge and building new North MS and move UPMS to Bryant cluster and build new PWPHS school. Move Woodland Forrest and Arcadia to old East-
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wwod and Eastwood to PWPHS.
Concept C does not seem to be an appropriate option. The new buildings sounds like a great addition, but having only 2 High School systems seems like it could
potentially exacerbate racial segregation in our districts. Having at least 3 high school systems would appear preferable to me, as it would be far easier to be more
inclusive of students from all racial, ethnic, cultural and religious backgrounds.
Concept C does the best to address the sitution; however, I believe the current magnet school property should be sold and a new North Middle School replacing
RQM constructed with appropriate athletic/arts/science facilities.
Concept C is probably the one that makes the most sense out of all 4 options. I would like to make a few suggestions for changing Concept C. I think that the property that Tuscaloosa Magnet School is on should be sold and the profits from that sell be used to build a new middle school north of the river on the property that
had already been earmarked for a new middle school on Northridge Road just down from the high school and Verner. The overcapacity issue at Bryant High School
could be addressed by moving the University Place students to feed into Central High School. University Place is closer to Central High School anyways and it
makes more geographical sense. I would suggest that ALL middle schools have athletic facilities.
Concept D - consider keeping 6-8 with 9-10. i.e. add full MYP and TCTA, making 6-12. Any concept- separate K/1-12 facility for IB.
Concept D adds to middle school facilities which is greatly needed. Two new high schools should help with diversity. Concepts B and C do not seem as diverse.
Concept D aside from being terribly expensive would run potential of overcrowding school facilities. 1500 heads of students is daunting and would prove challenging to feed, house, and contain such a number. Adding a 3rd smaller facility and lessening the size of the other 2 may help. Also, selling the Bryant/Eastwood campuses to the county schools seeing as to how they are located in Cottondale then use that money to build facilities closer to the areas where students live so they
don't have to spend 1 hour + per day traveling on the bus would be nice. Just a thought. Pardon the run-on sentences.
Concept D is a good idea in my opinion because there is less moving from school to school when your child is moving elementary schools.
Concept D is a horrible idea. First, it is prohibitively expensive. It is more costly than Concepts A, B and C. Pursuing D would sap the monetary resources that Tuscaloosa City Schools (TCS) must have for the most important thing -- providing an education inside the four walls of each school building. We cannot get carried
away by this heavy focus on facilities to the detriment of hiring the best teachers and administrators, creating a better curriculum and buying much-needed textbooks. Academic efforts in the classroom must have first priority -- not buildings. Second, the full high school experience would be denied to scores of TCS high
school students each and every year if TCS were to enact Concept D. Under Concepts A, B and C, as well as under present circumstances, a greater number of TCS
high school students experience more of what high school offers through participation in high school athletics, student government association, yearbook, school
newspaper, etc. If we were to go from three high schools to two high schools, then there would automatically be less spots for students to take on the various
sports teams, in student government, etc. Finally, going from three high schools to two high schools would drastically increase the cumulative amount of time per
year that students and many parents spend in buses and personal vehicles driving to and from school. This is essentially wasted time that could be better spent on
meaningful activities.
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Concept D is my favorite except it is not feasible with the IB Magnet School as proposed. You cannot put grades 6-8 at University Place and 9-10 at Central and
maintain IB certification. The IB Middle Years program is grades 6-10. Also, NONE of the options even consider putting all the IB magnet grades on one campus. It
would be very feasible to put the entire magnet school on the current Central High campus and rename it the Tuscaloosa Magnet School. You could then make
University Place middle the third middle school in that scenario. Magnet Elementary is a National Blue Ribbon award winning school - one of the few pieces of
good news for the city school system recently. That success needs to be built on and expanded, and the best way to do that is to put that entire program on one
campus. Having that as an option for the public school will also help keep people living in Tuscaloosa instead of Hoover due to perceived education quality differences.
Concept D is ridiculous. The school system spent millions of dollars in the last 10 to 15 years to build two high schools (Bryant and Northridge) and to do a major
renovation on Central High. This concept calls for millions more to be spent to find land in the city, and build two more high schools. Plus, it doesn't really change
the demographics of the Bryant zone. This concept would only benefit Northridge and Central. Because of cost, and the time it would take to implement this concept, it should not even be considered. It's hard to understand how to change and use facilities without knowing exactly how the Board of Education is going to
redraw the district boundaries. As it stands now, Northridge has 400 more students than Bryant and 600 more than Central. That's because the Board has worked
hard over the years to make sure people who live south of the Black Warrior River but don't want to attend Central High don't have to. It's crazy that students living in the historic district around The University of Alabama and downtown are zoned for Northridge when they live less than 5 miles from Central, which has the
space for them. If the Board will not make some tough decisions about how to correctly redraw the school zones, then this demographic and facilities study will be
all for naught. We will still have overcrowded schools that feed into more overcrowded schools north of the Black Warrior River.
Concept D is the best option in my opinion. However, I am concerned with items in this concept regarding the IB program (Magnet School). Seperating this into 2
different facilities will unfortunately weaken the program. These children learn with each other - all grades involved with each other. They grow together. Another important aspect is the concept calls for a "school within a school." The IB program has just experienced this and it was difficult for all parties involved. Drop off
and pick up was terrible. The 2 schools released at 2 different times. The gym, cafeteria, theatre, etc had to be shared with 10 or more grades (1-8 from one
school and k-5 in another school). Functions were terrible to schedule because both schools were competing for the same spots on the same calendar. There
were even some UA partnerships that were unable to be performed due to lack of calendar space. The safety of the children was a challenge because it was difficult to know which parents belonged to which school. As one school, the volunteers and staff learn this much faster and are able to foster a sense of protection.
With all this being said, my recommendation would be to have ONE IB program in ONE location (k-12). By doing this, it would allow an additional class for each
grade to be added. Currently there are over 500 applicants with only 80 slots, 60 of those going to first grade. This program needs room to grow and it will not be
given that opportunity if they are a "school within a school." Also, I believe there will be more graduates with an IB diploma if the school is housed k-12. The
teachers will be able to interact daily with each other as one group planning for the future of our children to ensure they recieve an IB diploma. The IB diploma has
so many benefits and speaks highly of those students who receive one. Currently, I do not believe there are many graduates with an IB diploma. One last thing to
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consider is the time and effort several schools have placed in the Druid City Garden Projects. This is a hands on learning experience funded partly by DCGP and by
the schools. The children, parents and teachers have contributed so much to the success of this program and I want to make sure it isn't lost in the changes that
are going to take place. Please consider the funds it will take to rebuild this program as these schools relocate. The City System will need to plan for the funding of
this to continue because the DCGP will not be able to start all of these programs again. Thank you for your time and interest in the success of our children. They
are our future. They will be here to take care of us who are completing this survey. The future is in their hands and we must consider each of the successes our
school system can bring.
Concept D is the best overall. It allows middle schools to have the equipment and room they need. Concept B and C is not as diverse as the other options.
Concept D is the only one that seems logical if we are REALLY concerned with the students. The fact that students from all different economic backgrounds will be
going to school together is great we had not had this since central was broken up
Concept D seems absurd from a fiscal and logistic standpoint. Why build two new giant high schools and turn the current relatively new high schools into middle
schools - this would be a waste of athletic facilities, as middle schools would never need such large athletic facilities, and these would have to be maintained. Concept B and C create more travel for students an parents who have children in both elementary and middle school. In any scenario, I don't understand closing the
old TMS facility and not utilizing it. Finally, giant middle schools may be harder to manage than giant high schools; therefore, concept A makes much more sense to
me.
Concept D seems the most visionary and hopeful for the future. It would re-integrate the schools, which is important for the kids, the teachers, and for the entire
town. It would provide better programs at lower cost by having only two high schools. With this priority in mind, I also think there should be some provision made
for the Magnet school and the IB program. The magnet school has been nationally recognized as a Blue Ribbon School for its programs and diverse student body. It
is a model of what could happen in the entire system. The point to remember, in any case, is that the IB program runs from grades 6-10, so it's not clear that particular program can be split across different schools efficiently. And for myself, as well as so many other parents of mutli-national and multi-ethnic students in our
district, the IB program is an essential educational need. Thanks!
Concept D will create the most diversity for all students within the Tuscaloosa City Schools. This option will allow resources to be distributed as equally as possible
to provide the best overall programs for all students and families.
Concept E: Two high schools (11-12), Bryant High, (9-10), Central High. Two middle schools (7-8), Westlawn Middle, (5-6), Eastwood.
Concepts A, B, and C could be acceptable. I don't know the condition of Tuscaloosa Magnet facility so it is hard to say if that would be ok for RQ middle. I do not
know enough about the other elementary schools to comment. I only know that I want to keep the 3 high schools as they are. I like the aspect of making a more
even enrollment with the different feeders. Northridge should not be so overcrowded. I live near Northride High and both of my children attend Northridge. I
love having a neighborhood school. I do know that if concept D passes, the city system should expect a massive loss of students to the private school system.
Concerned about zoning line changes that would make MS at Rock Quarry site an issue. Also concerned on Concept D of larger MS for city. Do not feel TCS admin-
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istrators can handle that many students at that age in one location. Social concerns about that age group in 1 location. Not sure TCS staff and administrators
equiped to run that type of efficiency.
CONCERNS Concept A: - increasing Alberta Elementary to 980; awfully large for the intended purpose of this school - including Skyland/Southview in the
Northridge feeder system (the high school furthest from them) puzzles me. Concept D: - adding IB grades 6-8 to University Place without increasing capacity
will shrink the size of University Place Elementary more than the other concepts. In my mind, this is a big negative in an
otherwise promising plan. ENCOURAGING POINTS Overall, I think the idea of two major high schools is on the mark. This will enable the TCS to offer more and stronger programs to our students.
Consider adding a HS on the south side of the river to eleviate distributing issues. The issues of this district all reside in the location of the high school. This appears to be a lot about worrying about diversity which should have been considered at time of construction.
Consider amending Concept D to allow housing the entire K-12 IB program in one facility.
Consolidate! Use facilities to best serve students. Definitely have the option of a continuous IB program. Bigger schools help arts instructors-- don't need to travel
so much, thus can have more instructional time.
Cost. It appears we have capacity just needs aligned. Two high schools - not in favor of super high schools.
Could Central High be repurposed under 2 high school system and be used for 1-12 IB program and expand program? Can UPES steam program go into magnet
middle if students can test in? In closing UPES middle will be ending STEAM that some parents are opting for children to attend. It could and should be a selling
point for the city schools. If IB is in bigger school could there be an option of continuing STEAM program in that middle school? Please think of things that draw
people who work at Univeristy into our school system. Most of people connected to UA in my historic neighborhood are going to private schools. Please also consider how the expanding university population is taking over neighborhoods centrally located driving families out. The city must work to help maintain neighborhoods around campus!
Dear Steering Committee and Board of Education: Thank you for your dedicated service to our community and our children. I truly appreciate your taking time out
of your busy schedules, and away from your families to serve in this important and difficult role. I attended the community work-session last week and truly appreciate your efforts. Please accept this memo my initial thoughts as to the proposed plan. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss this with the professional
consultants, each of the members of the steering committee and the Board at your convenience. 1. I think we all recognize that our education budgets will continue to be stretched and strictly limited well into the future. Therefore, any plan should require us to be good stewards of the public's money and be dedicated to
the benefit of ALL THE CHILDREN in order to maximize education opportunity based on each child's God given talents. Recognizing the shrinking federal and state
budgets, my first suggestion (but not necessarily a priority) would be to maximize, to the extent education practicable utilize school board property to generate
long-term revenue for our children. Specifically, please have an outside real estate consultant evaluate the financial benefits of LONG TERM GROUND LEASING for
commercial use of Tuscaloosa Magnet School, Northington Elementary School and Central Primary School. (I suggest an outside consultant to determine if it better
to ground lease or sell the real property - several local developers apparently believe that it was in its best interest to ground lease, as well as many other develop-
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ers - and we should not have any local inside deals to sell this property). The long term lease of the property would create revenue via the lease, itself, the ad valorem taxes, and the sales taxes. This revenue could be directed to operations, or certain school special programs to provide opportunities in the arts, athletics, etc.
2. We have three relatively new high schools which could be modified to meet modern education pedagogy. I do not think that it would be a wise or prudent use
of public money to build two new high schools. I also do not like the idea of two new high schools. The bigger the school, the less opportunities to participate in
sports, music, and other activities. Additionally, two high schools will require more student transportation and higher fuel costs. Let's put money into the teachers
and classrooms, not in the buses and the pockets of big oil. 3. We need to be educationally bold. I would urge the Steering Committee to consider transforming
Central High School in a 5-12 http://www.ucls.uchicago.edu/index.aspx. Let's find a way to create the BEST HIGH SCHOOL IN ALABAMA, AND IN AMERICA. Let us
utilize the strengths of the University of Alabama to create a school where the very best of our students are challenged. Make this a magnet and make it the best.
4. Turn TCTA into a charter school and free it from state school board regulations to grow to meet the needs of our industrial, commercial and professional employers - such that there will be classes from 6 am to midnight and beyond - with industry specialists who can be paid in accordance with industry standards and
need not have the antiquate training and certifications of bygone era. 5. There appeared to be great emphasis placed on diversity - which is very important. But
the goal should be the maximization of educational opportunities to reach each child's God given abilities. Diversity should be achieved by exceptional programming and magnet schools, not bussing, especially at the elementary school level. (Like the old Central Elementary Magnet Program). 6. I was disappointed to see
that there were not more creative solutions and new programming opportunities - it seem like we were having standard programs, building new buildings and
changing district lines. (What is project based learning and what type of projects are we talking about? For example, the State of Alabama has an on-line access
distance learning which provides educational opportunities on line for students - http://accessdl.state.al.us/ Four years ago, the district planned to start utilizing
this program. I would hope that each of our schools could have distance learning laboratories such that our children could participate in the following courses SEE COURSE CATOLOG - http://accessdl.state.al.us/documents/01-05-15-Catalog_Fall14-Summer2015_Web-BasedCourses.pdf THIS IS AN AMAZING OPPORTUNITY! It would be great for our kids to take Chinese, and German. How about a German School? Let's be bold! Let's be creative! 7. Given the growth in 35406,
and the even greater growth to come with the Eastern bypass and the McWrights Ferry road extension, a middle school must be built in 35406. It make little financial sense to bus these kids to the old TMS, especially when there has been historical consensus that TMS is a horribly designed school, and that property can be
leased to make money and generate taxes for education. I remain concerned that the data being utilized is neither accurate nor representative of the actual situation at Verner, RQE and RQMS. NONE OF THE PLANS ADDRESSES ALL THE ISSUES CONFRONTING 35406. The statistics on the Rock Quarry Middle School show
that RQMS with 515 students is only at 80% capacity. According to the district and the consultant, RQMS has a capacity of 638 students!? Anybody who has been
in the school knows that this is not accurate or feasible number. If RQMS is 20% under capacity, then why are there portables? How can it be 20% under capacity
when RQMS only has 67 square feet per student, but Eastwood has 130 square feet per student. Southview (also a K-8 school) – has 120 square feet per student
and Westlawn has 149 Square feet per student? The disparity in square footage per student reflects that RQMS’s library, music, art, lab, computer, theatre, and
cafeteria spaces, along with the other normal and necessary spaces are wholly inadequate and unequal. It is also interesting to note that the statistics say that RQE
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is with 535 students is at 80% capacity and should be able to handle 620 students. How can the Middle School, with only 1 hallway, have a capacity of 638, and the
elementary school have a capacity of 620 students - when the elementary schools has 3 hallways? These statistics are skewed because RQMS and RQE share space
and common areas. 35406 in the fastest growing part of town. The Townes of North River continues to grow. There are already homes going up in Waterfall.
There are apartments being built next to the Townes. There is a large new subdivision planned just past the Townes on Watermelon Road with hundreds of homes.
Additionally, more homes are going up in the Lakes of North River, and with the construction of the McWrights Ferry Road extension, new homes will surely be
built there as well. Indeed, the new tax structure makes the McWrights Ferry extension a reality in the near future. This will compound the already incredible rate
of growth in our area. It is time to build a new middle school in 35406. The land is already there. As the District’s facilities director, Jeff Johnson, once told a
group of us Dads, all we have to do is take the Westlawn Middle School plans and build it on the piece of land that is already available. When you compare RQMS
to the other middle schools, Southview, Bryant and Westlawn are truly educational palaces. Additionally, Verner is listed at 79% of capacity. The recommended
capacity is 660 students which is more than any other school designed as an elementary school. But Verner is also bursting at the proverbial seams. This is unacceptable and needs to be addressed. Last but not least, even by the District’s own statistics, Northridge is also over capacity right now. The other two high
schools are underutilized. This also needs to be promptly addressed. The zone lines should be changed immediately (START OF FALL 2015) to minimize this overcrowding. Again, thank you for your service. We appreciate you.
Do not believe grades 6-8 should be place in high school for any reason. Concern about large number of SPE students in concolidated schools if the concept is
changed to 1 large elemnetary. Removal of neighborhood schools - transportation for parents will be very difficult. Students from Southview Middle can come
from down 69 south; too far eastward. Did like the 2 HS idea.
Do not break IB at 8th-9th grade. The middle years programming is 6-10. 2 HS is great with current feeder. Concept D is not. Sell magnet and build a new MS at
Northridge Rd. but is is possible to access that area from Rice Mine Road? Big traffic caveat.
Do not close Woodland Forrest. Do not close or move magnet. Mega high school.
Do not consolidate anything to Arcadia unless a location can be found that is central to not; not at the edge of the zone.
Do not like any of these solutions. Our western parent population not here to discuss and evaluate options. Consider demographic out of school conflict concerns
that are pre-existing. SM and EMS kids already do not get along in their communities. Improve administration. Need to inforce code book/policies and behavior.
Do not remove choice from downtown unless you want mass exodus of families. Or unless you want all college rental. City has done a lot to encourage families
downtown and we as a city need to keep it that way.
Do we have the money to do all of the renovations and building of new schools? Teachers and Staff members haven't gotten raises but we have money to pay
companies to come in and tell us there solutions to problems that the previous administrations have made. Be fair and give every school the programs, opportunities, technology and materials they need to have positive and productive students.
Don't like SVMS and EMS being a larger middle school with little diversity. Also you will have children attending new EMS who live near 69.
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Don't think any of the choices are ideal, but only D and C provide any possibility of demographic balance. Three high schools have been a disaster, and only served
purpose of racial segregation which was former superintendent's goal to gain support for herself among WF area. ONLY ONE high school is ideal, fair. System fixed
what wasn't broken, and children have paid as well as tcs with PWBHS being an utter embarrassment to the system and CHS being relegated to "stepchild" status
in new bldg to placate the "undesirables." SHAMEFUL!'
Don't trust it.
Druid City Garden Project has put almost $12,000 worth of infrastructure at each school and a move of all of that would cost a few thousand dollars for each school
for costs in new compost, hiring moving vans for equipment, laying down new irrigation, etc. It seems crazy that the school or DCGP would be responsible for taking care of such expensive costs given that this decision is out of our control. Each classroom should be a PBL class and the PBL labs should be school gardens.
Due to the fact that most Pre-K units in the system are OSR, I would suggest keeping all OSR units together in a pre-k center.
During the morning session of Community Dialog #2, presenter Richter went out of his way to attack the Verner Elementary School facility as a building that is not
conducive for learning because it was not laid out in a proper manner. I find this to be a bizarre focus when, in fact, the diverse student body of Verner consistently has the highest test scores amongst the TCS elementary schools. It is not the building that makes or breaks great teaching and learning -- it is the leadership
(especially the school principal), the teachers, the parents, the curriculum, the resources (especially textbooks) and the efforts of the students. Richter lost credibility because Verner is not the problem. Other things are the problem -- for example, a too-small facility for Rock Quarry Middle School, an overcrowded
Northridge High School and a gross lack of textbook resources throughout the entire school system. I also need to comment on what TCS superintendent Dr.
McKendrick said during his introductory comments. He said that TCS has made a lot of improvements over the last couple of years and the example that he gave
was the rising graduation rates. TCS has nothing to brag about when it comes to graduation rates. Graduation rates have gone up some not because high school
students are learning more and performing better on tests. Instead, the rates are increasing because Central Office and the Board have wrongly kept principals
from expelling students who deserve to be expelled, the graduation exam was eliminated and TCS passes students who deserve to be held back. This is not progress. It is false bravado.
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Each option includes choices where it is apparent that a decision has already been determined to close the Magnet Elementary school and move to University
place; a decision has been made to close the Magnet IB Middle School program and move to Central High School. Each option A, B,C, and D all say the exact same
things as it relates to the IB Elementary and Middle School program so the choice has already been made?
Elem 1-5, 6 grade in one school, 7th grade in one school, 8th grade in one school, 9-10, 11-12. This was effective in the past.These concepts are nonsensical. Too
many elementary schools.Skyland and Martin Luther King should be the first to get a new school. Zoning for Southview need to be reconsidered for diversity.
Elementary schools that have Druid City Garden Project-sponsored school gardens and will be closed and relocated must have a guarantee that the gardens will be
rebuilt at their new school sites. The gardens are part of our school communities and are essential components to our curriculum - we cannot give them up. The
idea of a Project-Based Lab in every elementary school sounds nice but more feasible and more practical is to adopt DCGP gardens across all districts. ALL class-
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rooms should be PBL classrooms; there shouldn't be one place where students go to do this important work. The gardens provide this resource - all classrooms use
this outdoor teaching tool. I am in strong opposition to such large elementary schools. Schools on the elementary level should be small, supportive communities,
not large institutions where teachers don't even know every student's name.
Estimated cost per plan would be nice to know. Up front construction cost, and then ongoing cost to operate.
Even though Concept D seems to help fix current housing issues, it leave the IB program broken. 2 high schools would be great for programs offered. But even
better keep IB 1st-12th under 1 roof as the crown jewel of the District and centrally located near UA for lab experience, etc.
Every concept has the potential of further segregating the school systems into having one predominately black school one mixed and one majority white. The
school of arts has already been set as almost impossible for families of middle to lower class standards to be able to send their children due to the lack of funds to
truly train their children for an audition. The schools that will thrive with an advantage are the schools that will feed into across the bridge and also the IB program.
What program will there be for the other school? Further more taking it down to only two schools limits the possibility of sports for many children due to so many
trying to be on one team verse three. This is ridiculous and once again a ploy to segregate further. It is not about money.
Find better solutions. All of these are not in the best interest of our children.
First I would like to say i am all for education. I have a child in elementary two in middle school and one in high school. I chose concept A. That way you will have
the diversity that is well needed in the tuscaloosa city schools. All the renovations are good ideas and but why close tme it can still be put to use instead of building
a new school In the meeting this morning we were talking about the student ratio to teachers i think that university place should be zoned for central high school
why pass a school in order to attend another also last year westend students were taken from central and zoned to northridge why? Concept b and c i would never agree with these two i feel as if the minority will attend one school and bryant will be overpopulated how can the kids learn sitting on top of each other concept
D I like the concept with little tweaking I over heard today and the meeting that you do not have funds for option a or d why give us those options if you don't have
any intentions of using them why have any of the options use the money for school books, supplies ect…
First, more accurate and current enrollment figures should be used as well as a population growth study for areas of the City. The true enrollment figures should
then be compared to actual current school capacities. Second, the utilization percentages listed do not appear to be accurate either as some of the schools are
bursting at the seams with no extra space available, but are presented as having less than 90% of their space utilized. None of the concept changes presented are
appealing to our household or numerous other families that we know. Many are very concerned that one of the current options will be chosen. Of those presented, Concept C with the following changes seems best: build a new middle school near Northridge on FREE land instead of using the Tuscaloosa Magnet Facility;
either turn the TMF into a Pre-K Center since it is centrally located or sell it since it would likely bring one of the highest prices of any TCS campus. Those proceeds
could go towards building new schools or adding onto existing facilities. Instead of busing children across town, it is more important to have them attend schools
close to where the live. This strategy reduces time/$ on transportation, enables students to not have to catch the bus so early or return home so late, allows parents to more easily be engaged with the school, and promotes a closer knit community. Another change that may need to be reviewed is adjustments to boundary
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Honestly I don't like any of them. I have a child at Tuscaloosa Magnet Elementary and we had finally heard that they may use the empty wing Alberta occupied for
so long to make a 9th and 10tb and we were so happy our daughter wouldn't have to leave the school for awhile and now this....why does the Magnet School have
to close in every concept??? Really what's going to happen and what a lot of friends I have with kids have agreed with is that we would just withdraw our children
from the city school system and send them to private school.
Hopefully the magnet children will engage in sports now. Smaller High schools will be the best situation.
How will school within a school work? Students and teachers relating-sharing, library, cafeteria, playground space? Teachers/students being resentful of other
school and activities. Sharing 1 gym- enough time for all classes/grades to receive PE.
Huge concerns about the cost of plan D. What will we lose by spending all $ on two new facilities especially considering that part of our current problem is too
many facilities? The cost of property is huge as well as the harm to communities from abandoned facilities. Also concerned about the cost of leaving currently
established programs behind, the garden projects for example.
I am a mother of a middle school child and I oppose the idea of middle students and high school students being merged together in one school. Our children are
already being over exposed to too much as it is and at the tender age of 11-13 they are just fine in their own environment with kids their own age that has not yet
experienced much of nothing and are still vulnerable as opposed to 15-18 year olds that are coming into their own(as the should be). 6,7,and 8 graders should
always be separated for the young and the old because they are not either of the two. The stages they are going through are not ever going to be obsolete and
added pressures should not be put on their plate on top accepting they are no longer babies but are not old enough to yet be on their own, date, drive, and so on
and so on. I am a parent of a student who attends University Place Middle and I oppose the travel to Eastwood Middle and Northridge for our children. It is too far
for our students to have to commute from our area. If I have to go to the school for anything it will be too far to travel for emergency to Northridge or Eastwood
from my residential area. Tuscaloosa Magnet is far enough but Northridge and Eastwood is too far for me and others without transportation to have to travel to
reach their child for emergencies, parent teacher Association programs, etc. etc. etc. .
I am a volunteering member of the Druid City Garden Project, a program which I deem incredibly valuable to the children and schools that it works with. DCGP has
spent thousands of dollars on placing these gardening infrastructures at the school that currently have them, around 12,000 dollars. To move these infrastructures
would require just as much, if not more, money to move and place at different schools. Seeing as how DCGP has absolutely no say in this decision, it seems unreasonable to ask them to be the ones in charge of the cost it would take to move these important gardens. Secondly, I would like to discuss the importance of classrooms having Project Based Learning. Every single classroom should have PBL, and the one room that was to be designated for these PBL labs should be school
gardens. These kinds of issues should be considered when making these kinds of decisions.
I am disappointed with this survey. None of these "options" is realistic. The underlying logic of all of these plans is both deceptive and disheartening. No matter
what plan one "chooses," all involve the dissolution of the Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools as they currently exist. Is this because of the financial "value" of the property upon which the current Magnet Schools are situated? Is there an underlying business model here that seeks short-term financial gain at the expense of the chil-
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dren who are currently enrolled in the Magnet Schools? All of these plans either break up the Magnet Schools or move them to new locales. This kind of disruption is bad for education. We should build on the strengths that exist rather than tear things down and start all over. Why not just add a Magnet High School to
the existing building? There are plenty of classrooms available. why not consolidate this experiment in racial integration, perfect it, and export the magnet model
to other parts of town by developing a second or a third magnet school in other areas of the city? This plan lacks educational sense or justification. Is the property
upon which the current Magnet Schools sit so valuable that you all would sacrifice the progress in pedagogy that has been made during the last seven or eight
years? That's a blue ribbon school with an IB program. Do you seriously intend to throw that away?
I am in favor of Concept D. I am very opposed to having 2 middle schools joined at the Magnet school location. There are inadequate facilities now at Rock Quarry
Middle School. I do not understand how the Magnet school would be able to handle the needs of the students. Furthermore, the Magnet school property would
be a financial gain for the system, which would help offset the cost of the new high schools. I am very pleased with the new feeder patterns, as they make more
sense geographically. As for Concept C, I do not believe that an elementary school for 1,000 children for Arcadia/ Woodland Forrest/ Northington is in the best
interests of the children. A new elementary school for the Oakdale area may help esteem. The pre-K Center for that area would be a tremendous asset.
I am in favor of the concepts that keep school population smaller for a lower student/teacher ratio. Also, I understand the idea of "forced diversity", but bussing
kids to a school on the other side of town just for that sake seems silly when their "neighborhood" school is significantly under capacity in enrollment. I've learned
that many of the students currently attending school on the other side of town would rather attend the school that's closest to them.
I am most concerned with keeping the schools as racially and economically diverse as possible. We MUST work to avoid having a haves and have-not situation
within our school system.
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I am not happy about Arcadia being moved at all, I will convert to homeschool or private.
I am really in favor of Concept D because it affords every student the opportunity to have effective educators, the most efficient opportunities to excel cultivate
diversity within every school and prepare our students for college and career opportunities.
I am still very disappointed in the way the lines are drawn in this system. The racial and economic divide is still blatant. I had hoped that ridiculous zoning downtown, in the Highlands, and in other affluent neighborhoods would be addressed. These neighborhoods are clearly not "north of the river" yet they continue to be
zoned for Rock Quarry and Northridge resulting in the overcrowding problem. This system will continue to draw national criticism for racism. Apparently, we still
have plenty of people standing in the schoolhouse door.
I am trying to figure out why every concept involves try to change University Place. By looking at the plans, I can see that TCS is trying to phase out University Place
so that it no longer exists and giving TMS the new building so that the magnet school can have a new building since that is supposedly the best school in the district.
I am very concerned about the status of the magent school. All info presented seems facility based with very little info on the programs. Tuscaloosa should strongly emphasize diversity in a system that is overly segregated currently. School officials should also consider having a magnet school in the downtown area with a
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combination of zone by right if drawing kids from other schools.
I am very pleased with where my children attend school. The most important things to me are safety, quality instruction, and a dedicated staff.
I attended the meeting tonight and have one comment. It should be shown that there is a plan to offer Pre K to the enrollment projected for the next year. It is
either inaccurate or deceiving to show the same number (337) through 2025 when it was stated the program would be setup to accommodate more students. All
the concepts are somewhat palatable, with the exception of concept "D". I have experience with super high schools already and don't think TUscaloosa has any
location that is equipped to handle that amount of traffic, whether it be from cars or school buses, with the number of people that would be using these facilities.
I appreciate all the effort put into the study and look forward to learning the final decision and seeing the selected plan implemented. I think we got more questions raised tonight, and feel confident we will know the answers to them soon. Keep up the good work.
I attended the morning session and based on the presentation I felt there was not enough information on plan D to make a determination even though I ranked it
third. I also like the idea of combining the new middle school option from plan A with the details of plan B. I am concerned that with whatever changes are made
for the IB program that it be placed in an environment that fosters excellence from faculty as well as within the program.
I believe a combination of Concept B and C would be the best option.
I believe every classroom should be a PBL classroom and every school should convert said PBL lab into a schoolyard garden instead. The Druid City Garden Project
has established four wonderful and effective schoolyard gardens since 2010. Those four schools should be allowed to retain their garden programs at no cost to
them or DCGP if they are to be moved (i.e. the effected schools would be Oakdale Elementary, Magnet Elementary, and Woodland Forrest Elementary). Lastly, I
am weary of the move to larger schools for two main reasons: 1) I worked in a school of 700 students and we had to plan our curriculum time around bathroom
breaks as there were not enough bathroom facilities to accommodate the population in a timely manner. 2) the same goes for the lunch schedule at larger schools
- there should be two lunchrooms so that students do not have to start lunch at 10am in order to accommodate the population.
I believe students should attend the school that is closeted to their home. Demographics should not matter. We need to focus on providing each child the best
education possible no matter where they attend school, and no matter where they live.
I believe that each classroom should be a Project Based Learning class, and that PBL labs should be gardening. DCGP has successfully invested over $12,000 into
the gardens. It would be unfair for the schools and DCGP to have to pay the thousands of dollars it would cost to move all the gardens and equipment to the new
school locations, when this decision is out of their control. If the schools do relocate, I strongly believe the cost should be covered by the city.
I believe the concepts the city schools system need to have a purpose of why they are changing the school systems for people to be involved in it. But my opinion
on the school systems is that I think that they shouldn't change the schools but they should increase the different demographics at the schools. For example, Central High School is 99% black and 1% white. What could change is that they should change the zoning and expand Central zoning. I believe the school systems
shouldn't take away Central's square footage because it's been a historical place for people that went to Central and the community of Tuscaloosa. Another concept that can be in reconsideration is that they can make a one Central High School in the same location but bigger square footage. That can increase the de-
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I did not see any info regarding additional/modification to Northridge in Concept A.
I disagree to all the concepts because I feel the money that's going to be used to restructure, remove, and move all these schools could be utilizing more into the
schools we already have to benefit these kids education.
I disagree with all the concepts provided. It seems to me that the best chance of success comes with simplicity. Students should be allowed to attend the high
school closest to their community until it reaches capacity then the next closest high school should be the option and so on. Tuscaloosa is diverse but separated by
racial and social class therefore, establish a system where equality is honestly and truly sought so that regardless of where one attends school, the opportunity is
the same. During my lifetime, this has never happened.
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mographics and there can be more activities for students to be involved in. For example, more foreign languages, more classes and electives to take, and after
school activities that can bring more money to the school. This concept could help the students with a better opportunity to be interactive with other races. Concept D is kind of a band thing because students of Northridge and little of Central will be there. But Central and Bryant will be combined in way but still it'll make
the community very disappointed in the actions of the school system. This is my opinion the concepts and I hope you take my suggestions in reconsideration.
I cannot support any plan that doesn't include a new middle school north of the river. Current facilities for it are inadequate and you're going to lose students if the
move to the magnet school property is made. There is no mention in option a on where the new middle school would be built so hard to say if we'd support that
plan. It's ludicrous to suggest rock quarry middle is under capacity with portables already in place. Northridge high needs to have its boundaries reduced and have
central and Bryant use more of their capacity. If the new middle school is built north of the river I am definitely in favor of option A. I beg the school board to hear
the voices of parents on this side of Tuscaloosa.
I cannot support or endure any of these plans as written. IB should be an autonomous K-12 school. IT would help recruit new faculty and families. I also do not
support multiple administrations on one site. I do not think putting 6-8 IB on a high school campus is appropriate that has 700+ high schoolers. The closets I like is
Plan D.
I cannot vote or rank for any plans as is. I prefer the idea of 2 high schools. There seems to be total disregard in all plans for the IB program. I (along with all of my
table) would like to see the IB housed all under one roof.
I chose concept D only because it does the most for maintaining TMSE/TMSM as an autonomous school. The remaining plans not only SPLIT the magnet school
further than concept D, but it also seems to portray the magnet school as being absorbed in to University Place ES and losing its individual identity. I believe this is
not in the best interests of the city, and the magnet school especially. It is a model school, has garnered numerous awards and recognition for the city. To be treated as a part of an existing program minimizes those accomplishments and further, does not encourage growth within a successful concept.
I dislike that this survey forced me to choose among the four concepts as stated, without being able to ask questions or prefer some components of one concept in
conjunction with another. Specifically, I am concerned about the fate of the IB Magnet School. The current magnet building is closed down under many of the four
options and the magnet program moved in all of the options. I find this aspect of the proposed changes problematic. I had two children go through the magnet IB
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program. It is the most integrated and academically successful school program run by the School Board. TMSE won Blue Ribbon national recognition. I believe
that this review process should do everything possible to protect and strengthen the IB magnet program. I appreciate very much that all four concepts implement
9-10th grade IB, but why not consider 1-12 IB all in one building (with different wings for early/middle/high)? Why not keep the present building, with renovation
to accommodate the high school component? Why is there no such option in your four concepts? Breaking up the earlier and later years of the IB magnet program and relocating to two different school buildings as all the four concepts proposes risks weakening the IB magnet program. Again, it is the Board's best and
most successful--most racially integrated, most high achieving, most nationally recognized--program of the past decade. To the best of my knowledge, the magnet
IB program community is happy where it is and doesn't want to move; furthermore, it has room to expand with 9-12 on its present site. Not offering such an option in your four choices makes me suspicious about your commitment to the IB magnet program. Please introduce a fifth concept in which the present magnet
building becomes the site of a full 1-12 IB magnet program.
I do feel as if this whole change is very unnecessary and it will have an effect on many. I like the way the schools are ran now so why change when its only going to
cause confusion and things will then become hectic . Think about the learning of the kids not about how improvise on how to save money.
I do not agree with placing STARS back at the local high schools. One of the main benefits of the STARS program is that it isolates those students and teaches them
in a smaller environment where they can receive the attention they so desperately need. Also, I believe that allowing those students who had to commit serious
infractions to be sent there in the first place to now remain on their home campus will allow further discipline issues. I do like the idea of going back to two high
schools. However, having taught in this school system I quickly came to realize that the BEST school was Northridge and the WORST school was Central. It is my
understanding that concept D would combine those to schools. I think that does a major disservice to the students and families who attend Northridge. However,
Bryant High School needs a major overhaul as well. If plan D would allow for that major overhaul to occur, then I would be more likely to consider it. The boundary lines definitely need to be addressed and employees and friends of people in the system should not get to pick which school they send their children to. People
need to go to the school they are zoned for, send their children to private schools if they want a say in where they go, or move into the school zone where they
want their children to attend.
I do not approve of any of these concepts. I would prefer to keep the schools like they are now. This is too much of a change to implement. Thanks Concerned
Parent
I do not believe that the Magnet school or STEAM programs need to be separated from each other. I strongly believe that separating the programs would fragment them, and because of this they would have difficulty staying alive. These programs have been overwhelmingly successful; TMSE gained the supreme educational award of becoming a National Blue Ribbon school last year, and University Place's STEAM program is one of the first in the nation. These programs must be
supported for Tuscaloosa to become an educational powerhouse. Ideally, I would love for Tuscaloosa Magnet School to be 1-12 in Central High School. As has
been stated, we need continuation of the IB program, and as the numbers have shown, the 11-12 grade IB programs have not been successful when paired with
another school. Central could easily house a 1-12 program with around 60-100 students per grade level. I do think the schools need to be rezoned according to
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proximity, which I feel that options D, C, and B (in that order) take into account more than option A. I think having 2 high schools is feasible, as is reorganizing and
consolidating the middle schools.
I do not like any of the options. A mega school is a horrible options - do your research. All of the money invested in the Woodland Forrest nature trail city garden
project and science lab should be considered. You should not shut down all the neighborhood schools. It is obvious the wealthy schools were left alone.
I do not like any of the proposed "Options" I do not feel as though the options take into account the community relationships as well as other adamant problems.
I do not like the idea of having two separate schools in one building. This seems fractious rather than unifying. It also creates issues such as who is responsible for
building maintenance, who do the staff report to, etc.? It also seems expensive, duplicating administrative costs, office staff, office space and other personnel.
I do NOT like the only two High School options. I feel the Northwest HS, if built for only 1500 students, would very quickly get overcrowded in just a few years.
I do not see the need to lose Rock Quarry Middle School.
I do not support any of the concepts. Oakdale has been a school for several generations for family. This while idea of rezoning and moving kids is not fair ot right.
Before they renovated and built all these new shcool they could have saved that money. Now it appears that one of the concepts suggests 2 HS. Well why don't
you just go back to one high school? They should have just built one to CHS. Rezoning every year makes no sense. The county schools don't rezone this often so
why does the city keep moving our children around? Please keep Oakdale open and come up with new concepts.
I do not think 6th graders should be in the same facility with 9-12 graders. 6th graders are too young to be exposed to the behaviors of high school students. Administration needs to be stronger to prevent the trouble makers from running the school. If they get in trouble they need to be punished. No tolerance for students attacking teachers and staff.
I do nto feel that this was as productive or as participarnt driven as it should have been. I don't understand why we just don't redraw boundaries for more diversity. I do believe that some schools were purposely not touched.
I don't agree with any of the concepts. All Pre-K students are located in African American neighborhoods.
I don't like any of the options and this survey FORCED me to choose.....I especially DO NOT want Woodland Forrest closed!!!!
I don't think that its a good idea for middle school children to be with high school children.
I feel Concept D with some modifications is the best option. I strongly believe that it is time to reorganize the RQ middle school in the 35406 zone to relieve that
area from tremendous congestion during peak times. So a new high school in 35406 area would be a welcome step. However, the location of that school is critical
otherwise traffic congestion is not going to be resolved. I have two kids in magnet (one in elementary and other in middle). I know that the number of students
who attend magnet is very small compared to the overall numbers in the city, I want to make sure that our voices are heard. I would strongly suggest that consideration be give in putting the magnet school K-12 program with IB curriculum at one campus/place (TCTA might be an ideal location for this as it is under utilized as
of now) . This school has made such a tremendous progress in the last 4-5 years and earned many awards including Blue Ribbon award. I am sure we want to keep
the momentum and build from there. Plan D gives the program the best chance for success and expand opportunities for other students to participate. Magnet has
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build a reputation with integrating of IB in their curriculum, being the back bone of their program. While building are very important but good schools cannot survive only on good building, they need good academic programs and good teachers/administrators. So it is my hope that everyone involved with decision making is
aware of the requirements for the elementary, middle and high school IB program. Housing IB magnet with other schools/campus/buildings may put some constraints on the IB program. My hope is that we don't make a mistake during the re-organization process which will put us five step backward rather than few steps
ahead. It is worth pointing out that Magnet school has played a critical role in recruiting good faculty to UA. Location of new magnet school will also highly impact
the most popular and unique outreach program called “UA partnership”currently held at magnet. In this program magnet kids get an opportunity to learn from
undergraduate, graduate students and faculty of UA, who teach “UA partnership” on Tuesday afternoons and quickly get back to classes due to the close proximity
of current magnet school. This may change depending on the new location of the school.
I feel like the schools being joined together will only make them more crowded. Bullying will become an issue even more now within the school district.
I feel strongly that University Place should be feeding into Central. It seems a waste of resources to bus these kids farther away.
I feel that students would be better served if Southview becomes one large elementary school. The school could be divided into pre-k through 2nd in one half and
3rd through 5th in the other half. It makes it easier for parents to have all students in one building at least until middle school. I had always preferred one megahigh school to the division of all of the students at the high school level. I never felt that dividing the city into clusters was a good idea.
I feel that the city school system is not big enough for 3 high . On the west side there is no diversity.
I feel that the geographical zoning lines that divide the school districts for the high schools need to be thoughtfully reassessed. The focus should be on facilities and
student numbers, nothing else. There is too much disparity in our system's facilities and resources using the present system.
I feel that the School such stay like they are
I feel that there still isn't diversity within the western cluster on any of the concepts except for D when kids enter high school. To me, diversity within the city
schools is important. Children on the west side are treated a lot differently then the other schools. They get the short end of the stick with every decision.
I find none of the concepts acceptable as described. And, I resent being forced to choose which plan among four or two undesirable plans I "prefer." Notwithstanding my objections to the four concepts. The "data" of my choices will undoubtedly be used to demonstrate one plan is preferable. I strongly object to the IB School
(Tuscaloosa Magnet) being "cut up into pieces. It is the most successful school in the system! It should be expanded! The ideal plan would create a Kindergarten
through 12th grade IB school configured according to the IB structure as follows: K – 5(early years); 6 – 10(middle years); and, 11 – 12 (diploma years). This program should be established at Central Campus.
I find option A to be the best option because it offers a pre-k program in every elementary school. I totally disagree with option D. I really do not see the purpose or
difference it will make.
I guess I am wondering why some of these major plans are even being put on the table. It seems as if the most important thing about all of this is being overlooked
and that is the kids. Concept D might be one of the worst ideas I've heard as a way to restructure a school system when it comes the day-to-day life of the stu-
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dents. I feel like that is a change that should never happen and it would be wasteful. All three of those schools are basically brand new. They have only been
around for a little over 10 years and all of sudden it is being proposed that we build new ones. Concept A is the most sensible because it does not change drastically. Following concept C or concept would be a grave mistake. That is a change I do not think would work and I feel that if you made it it would negatively effect the
system for years to come. It would take at least a decade or more just to get it back to the way it was. Also, concept C and D do not make sense to me because I
feel like more people would lose their jobs do those. Concept A I am in full support of if the system feels that there needs to be a change. B is a far second. C and D
are not even in the picture to me.
I have an elementary student at TMSE and a middle schooler at RQMS. Here are my thoughts: Out of the options provided I prefer a MODIFIED version of option D.
I strongly believe that the the Magnet School needs to be a free-standing 1-12 or K-12 at the current Central High School. This would allow the school to operate
under one administration (1 principal with 3 assistant principals). I do not know ONE SINGLE family of current Magnet students that plans to send their child to IB
at Central (for 11-12). I also do not believe that people will send their child there if the current CHS is also housed in the same building for a 6-12. As sad as that is,
it is true. If Magnet was all housed at the current CHS location, it would allow for expansion of the school to allow more students to attend. The enrollment currently begins to decrease in the middle schools years. If high school was an option (free standing and not a school within a school), I believe this trend would end
and MORE students would desire for their child/children to attend a Tuscaloosa Magnet High School. This might also prevent some from leaving public school altogether in the middle and high school years. I for one will NOT send my child to a 6-12 IB if it becomes an addition to the current CHS. I believe that reducing the
general high schools to 2 would increase resources for the schools as well as increase the diversity. I do question why Northridge (or northern school) would have a
higher enrollment that Bryant (or southern school). Hopefully I am reading that incorrectly and the volume is more equal. If the zoning lines are being redrawn
then they should even out the schools and not place a heavier student load at the northern school. I support the moving of Rock Quarry and UP to the current
Northridge building. If a new high school is to be constructed at the Ol Colony property, I do have some concern about the largest elementary, middle and high
schools being within a short distance. The traffic in the area would be a nightmare. Something needs to be done about the current CHS. If the 3 school option is
chosen and the feeder pattern remains from more poverty-stricken areas then the school will not change. I attended the old Central and remember what a fantastic school it was. It sickens me to see what has happened. I wish there was a way to go back but I know that isn't an option. The 2 high school option with Magnet
as a possible 3rd is the best option in my mind. The ideal in my mind would be to have 3 high schools: a southern, northern and Magnet high school. If the enrollment at Magnet High was increased to 100 per grade for high school then that school could take some of the weight off the other 2 and allow more students to
obtain an IB certification.
I have to be honest that we are zoned for Rock Quarry Elementary and Rock Quarry Middle and hate to see anything change. We love our neighborhood school
and take great pride in the strides the community makes to make it a better place. We support public schooling to the fullest and come from a long line of public
school teachers. I believe if we can stick with neighborhood schools and keep the families involved where at all possible it will be a win for both students and parents. I am afraid if you change the dynamics too much you will lose many students to private schools which is unfortunate. Please leave Rock Quarry Elementary
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and Middle as is, we love our schools!
I highly value the idea of project based learning and arts enrichment at all schools. Pre-K at all schools is a major step forward. Now we need gifted programs and
science classes at all schools beginning from Kindergarten. Science classes should be available to all students from an early age because science and scientific thinking will be used in every career in the future, and children without a background in science will not be competitive.
I honestly do not like any of them. I am very concerned about the overall test scores of the city school and the diversity, or lack thereof. I personally do not see
that getting any better with any of these options. Regarding the Magnet School, I am not sure how to interpret its use in any of these concepts, I am interpreting it
as they will do away with the Magnet all together, if that is the case, that may help. Why single out "smarter" kids into one school?? That is the reason the Magnet has such great scores and all or most of the other city schools have very poor scores. You are placing many of the better teachers there to teach the more intelligent kids?? I chose not to get my daughter tested this year to go into Magnet into the 1st grade because I thought it was a lot of pressure to place on a kindergartener. I regret that decision now because of 2 reasons, the quality of her education and the fact that her friends will be leaving her school, so she will not have
any of her really good friends next school year. Lastly, we are zoned for my children to go into Eastwood, if everything that I hear about that school is fairly true,
even a fraction, there is no way I will make them attend Eastwood!!
I just filled out the second page to get past it. I am not in agreement with any of the proposals that separates TMSE and TMSM. If you want to continue the IB program the best decision is to put TMSE and TMSM in Central High School, along with the IB High School. This would make the program more desirable to the public
and grow the High School program. When you fragment the program. it will lose it's strength. Having an all IB school will draw people to the program and draw
people to our community. The IB program is a special program that is not like anything we do in the other schools and it should not be handled as a regular program. We will be taking steps backwards and destroy all we have done to recreate the IB program in our community. Again, this program should be centrally located and on its own. This will give the program more prestige.
I like Concept A. It makes sense and it doesn't uproot the children too much. We had 2 high schools before. Why waste tax money on building new schools and
not use them? Concept A is a good change that our schools really need.
I like concept C except I prefer construction of a enw middle rather than using TMS.
I like how the plans B,C,D diversify and get the school balanced. A is least change and does not address the issues of today's school.
I like plan C the best but I want Rock Quarry Middle to be able to build a new school.
I like the B&C concepts since they utilize single feeder middle schools for each high schools. I think this helps with neighborhood and unity within the high schools.
These two also minimize the distance anyway of busing. I think that the earlier students are put together, the better they bond through their teen years-- no evidence, just an observation. I feel that concept D, while intriguing in some ways, would make our school system poor stewards of its resources. The cost for building two new high schools would be very high. The other concepts' costs could be at least partially offset by selling the closed properties. The "A" concept perhaps
would do this best since the TMS facility is likely the most commercially valuable. However, I don't know if it would offset the cost of building a new middle school
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north of the river (I assume this would be the site adjacent to Northridge HS). I suspect that some melding of A, B and/or C would work best. Another observation
is that all of these seem to rely on the mega- or multiple- elementary school concept. I know we have our consultant's observation that these are "in" and I can see
some of the efficiencies, but have these been vetted in the area, in Alabama, in similar circumstances?
I like the combination of both concept B and concept C. 3 high schools, 3 middle schools and 9 elementary schools/ and or 8 elementary schools seems to be the
best option for our Tuscaloosa City School System.
I like the idea of Rock Quarry MIddle being moved to a new school. Northridge is overcrowded. Something needs to be done. Two mega high schools should be
out of the question. We have perfectly good high schools. The middle is where we fall short. We have put a bandaid on a gaping wound by adding on the Rock
Quarry. Here is another proposal: Build a new Rock Quarry Middle school. Make Verner a K-12 school and Rock Quarry a 3-5 school. You will utilize both buildings efficiently.
I liked none of these options and find the fact that to be heard, I was required to say that I did as it was the only way to get to the comment box. I want the IB program to be on one campus, K-12. The charter goes with the site, and all students at the site must receive IB. Best case is Central HS location becomes the IB location with approx. 1000 students enrolled K-12. Offer sports in the MS/HS and more kids will stay. Centrally located. Then, two other high schools. I like them in the
Northern and Southern locations.
I love the idea of a new middle school for RQMS, which would lead me to choose Option A as my first choice. However, with Option A, the overcrowding at
Northridge isn't fixed. I feel like the overcrowding at Northridge is a more immediate need than a new Rock Quarry Middle which is why I chose Option B or C as
my first choices. If the overcrowding at Northridge could be addressed, then Option A would be my top choice. I am not AT ALL in favor of 2 mega high schools!!!!!!
I moved my children from private school into the public school system. While I can appreciate the need to provide more space and better facilities to the masses.
I'm very disappointed in the lack of programs and resources that are brought forth for gifted students. As a result, I'll more than likely be sending my kids back to
private school. I wish TCS the best in your efforts to provide the best possible learning environment for all Tuscaloosa city students
I moved where I'm at because I wanted my child to attend Woodland forrest elementary and I vowed to stay until she finished this school. She's only in the first
grade now and she did attend Pre K here she loves this school and her teachers. They even check on her to she how she's doing. The place I live I didn't want to
stay here but I'm staying only because this is a great school. I'm now in the process of looking for a home to buy in the area so she will stay at this school. So whatever you all decide to do not move this school. I'm firm believer in staying in the same elementary school it's a child's foundation to life and woodland forrest is a
prime example of this. Keshawanna Sims
I only provided a ranking of concepts on this survey because the computer required me to do so. I really don't like any of concepts very much. I do like that 9 and
10 grades for IB are added for all concepts. I do like that concepts B,C and D address Northridge overcrowding. I do like the idea of two high schools to help with
more socioeconomic and racial diversity, but option D has the IB program divided into three schools in a way that does not match the IB curriculum, which is based
on K-5, 6-10, 11-12 groupings for grades. Also, I feel like option D does not seem financially possible. I hope housing all IB grades in one building is something con-
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sidered. My children are part of this program and the elementary and middle magnet programs work together very well. Also, both principals are trained in IB so
they share some training and understanding of each other's curriculum. In addition, please consider a recommendation increase the size of the IB grades so we
can truly fill up a school. There is always more interest in the program than can be accommodated and making it larger would help with sports too (which will also
help with older kids staying in the program). IB is a great draw for people coming to work at UA (our town's primary employer), plus it's helped start programs like
UA partnership which are being replicated elsewhere in the district. Having IB sharing a building with another school *might* work out well, but that building must
have an additional gym, band/strings/art/kitchen spaces and a very large cafeteria and library space. The schools will have different faculty and different needs for
these spaces and sharing them is very difficult. Fundamentally, sharing buildings is a resource issue that must be equitable across all schools - every school should
have the access they need to shared spaces in their buildings. Please consult with principals in our district who have experience sharing buildings like this
(Principals at Alberta, TMSM and TMSE, RQE and RQM, University Place, Westlawn) so they can give you specific information on this. When Alberta joined the magnet building, there simply was not enough time in the day to get everyone into the building's gym for PE in one day. It was a short term problem but it shouldn't be
replicated in any of these options as a long term solution to sharing buildings and must be addressed in the planning stages. In addition, sharing buildings can cause
logistical traffic and bus nightmares that must be addressed and solved on paper prior to the first shovel of dirt starting construction. For example, RQM and RQE
have long suffered a traffic disaster every morning and afternoon related to pick up and drop off, all because the roads and entrance/exit to that school were never
designed for that number of drivers.
I personally believe that the 2 schools within one building is wasteful. There is no reason to have 2 seperate layers of administrative staff within 1 physical facility.
I prefer Concept A because I would like to keep the neighborhood school. And if you move schools it makes traffic bad for the parents. We need 4 high schools
becaise on all concepts the high school level is right at capacity.
I prefer no change.
I realize that I have written a lengthy response, but I think that the plan for one Mega High School I have listed near the bottom would be worth considering.
Thoughts regarding Concepts A and B: It states that there is no change to Westlawn Middle. A new middle school building will be built for Rock Quarry and University Place Middle. This does not make sense. University Place is much closer to Westlawn and Westlawn has the room for them. When University Place was housed
in the Westlawn building after the tornado, it went very well. Bussing students over the river would be much more costly and inconvenient. Also, combining University Place and Westlawn into the Westlawn building would also create a more diverse environment in the school building. Since the enrollment is not very high
at either school, I may even suggest combing the two middle schools to be run by one principal and a few assistant principals. All of the feeder patterns in Option A
are basically the same as they are now, which keeps those high-poverty/failing schools feeding into Central High School. Other things about the current feeder
pattern don't make logical sense. For example, University Place is blocks away from Central High School, yet those students are in the Northridge feeder pattern.
The same is true for Southview. They are much closer to Bryant, but are in the feeder pattern for Northridge. I would suggest changing these feeder patterns.
Thoughts regarding Concept C: I like the fact that Southview moves into the Northridge feeder pattern. However, I do not think that combining Northington and
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University Place is the best idea. I would suggest that Skyland and University Place would make more sense due to the fact that their boundaries touch. I also think
that one or both University Place and Skyland should feed into Central High School. It is much more convenient to their locations. I also think that combining
Woodland Forrest and Skyland Elementary would make more sense, since their boundaries touch. I would place Arcadia and Northington in the Northridge feeder
pattern. Thoughts regarding Concept D: If we had to go with one of these options, I would prefer to go with this plan, but I still have some concerns about it. I think
there would be a lot of rivalry between the schools. I also know how difficult it is to find the amount of land needed to build these schools. I can't think of any convenient location where the schools could be built. This option would also be very expensive. I like this plan because it presents the much needed diversity. I realize
that I have a lot of information recorded here, but this is the most important. My group came up with an idea that I truly believe will give us all of the things we are
looking for in our schools (diversity, reduction in failing and high poverty schools, saving money for the system). When we discussed this option, we had Hoover
High School in mind. The athletics and academics could be improved. If we look at this plan, we could really bring the city together and expose all students to the
type of comprehensive education they deserve. Right now, we are supposed to have "Academies" at Central High School and TCTA. When I was first introduced to
the idea of Academies in the schools, I was really excited for those students to have those opportunities. However, with the current enrollment, it is difficult to
maintain these programs and run them with the fidelity in which they need to be run. If we combined the three high schools into one school, we would be able to
support these academies and they could be run the way they were intended. Our students would greatly benefit from this. I have discussed this with group members at table 7 last night and individuals from the system, parents and those outside the city and the system. I would like for the Committee to consider building
one mega- high school for the district. I would suggest building this school near Northridge. We could update the athletic facilities at Northridge to accommodate a
7A program. We would then be in the same class as Hoover, Prattville, Spain Park and Tuscaloosa County High. I think that this could lead to great things for Tuscaloosa City Schools. One concern raised about this was that this would provide fewer opportunities for all students to play football. However, if you look at other
schools that size, you would see that they have a 9th grade team, a JV team and a varsity team, so most will still have the opportunity to play. Also, with a school
that size, you would have the ability to provide other sports that are currently not offered at all schools (lacrosse, swimming, tennis, etc.). With the different academies, students would be able to focus on what they are really interested in. Students who currently play sports may realize that they are more interested in performing arts or some other activity. All extracurricular activities would improve an could really function in a way that serves the students well. The school would
also have students from various backgrounds working and learning together. This would prepare them for their future in the work field or college. It is critical that
all of our students are provided with equal opportunities to be successful in the world. I think that in the long run, this plan would cut down on behavior issues and
it would increase our graduation rates. I also think that combining schools into one mega high school would help improve the instruction that our teachers provide.
Teachers could learn effective teaching strategies from others, which would create a more positive school environment and increase student achievement. Our
plan would only require the system to build one new school, expand one school and make renovations to other schools as needed. We think that keeping the small
school feeling, while also being able to provide all of our students with great opportunities and resources such as elective classes is a valid reason to operate multiple schools in one building. We would convert the current high schools into middle schools. Central Middle would house students from Westlawn Middle and Uni-
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versity Place Middle, which would have an enrollment of 569 with a recommended capacity of 794. Bryant Middle would house students from Eastwood Middle
and Southview Middle, which would have an enrollment of 957 with a recommended capacity of 1,170. Northridge Middle would house students from Tuscaloosa
Magnet Middle, Rock Quarry Middle, which would have an enrollment of 669, with a recommended capacity of 1,170. I would suggest that Oak Hill or the STARS
program could be relocated to this building as well. Alberta would remain unchanged. None of these buildings would need any major renovations for this change
to take place, so as soon as the Mega high school is built, the middle schools can move as well. On the elementary level, we would like to see several small schools
operating within the same buildings. In the Central Middle feeder pattern would be University Place, Skyland, MLK, Central Elementary, and Oakdale. University
Place Elementary School and Skyland functioning as two separate schools within the University Place building. The enrollment would be 808, with a recommended
capacity of 876. We would sell the Skyland property. We would move MLK, Central Elementary, and Oakdale into the current Westlawn Middle building (this
would be one of the last phases and one of the two construction jobs in this plan). We would need to make Westlawn appropriate for elementary students and we
would also need to add onto the school, so there is enough room. The fields around the school are great property for an expansion. We could also take the land at
the current Central Elementary if needed. The three schools would function separately in one building. The enrollment in the school would be 1,066. Westlawn's
current capacity is 747, so we would need to expand. The MLK building, Oakdale building and Central Elementary building (if not needed for expansion of
Westlawn) could be sold. Depending on the value of the land, I would look at the possibility of placing a Pre-K program in a renovated Oakdale or MLK. In the Bryant Middle feeder pattern would be Woodland Forrest, Southview Elementary, Arcadia,Northington, Woodland Forrest and Southview Elementary would function
as two separate schools and be housed in the current Southview building. Woodland Forrest would move into the middle school side of the building. The enrollment would be 910, with a recommended capacity of 1,094. Arcadia and Northington would function as two separate schools and could be housed in a new building, or in the Magnet school building. The enrollment would be 760 with a recommended capacity of 1,019. We would sell Northington. Another option would be
to sell the Magnet school to UA and build a new building to house the two schools, perhaps on the old Oak Hill site. We would also convert the Woodland Forrest
building into a Pre-K center. In the Northridge Middle feeder pattern, would be Alberta, Rock Quarry Elementary, Tuscaloosa Magnet Elementary, and Verner. Alberta would remain unchanged in the elementary and middle levels. Rock Quarry Elementary would remain in its current building, with an enrollment of 535, and a
recommended capacity of 620. We would move Tuscaloosa Magnet Elementary into the Rock Quarry Middle building. The enrollment would be 290, with a recommended capacity of 638. The rest of the building could be used for something else such as an alternative school, IB program, or SPE classrooms. Verner would be
renovated. In this plan, the following schools may be sold: Arcadia, Central Elementary, MLK, Oakdale, Northington, Skyland, Tuscaloosa Magnet, Woodland Forrest and Eastwood. These schools may also be used for other things such as Pre-K programs etc. This plan could be the most beneficial to the entire system and I
think it should be carefully considered. I think that the system
I really appreciate the administration taking a look at what can be done better. I believe with all my heart in diversity, but I also think that true diversity is only obtained when we aim for excellence not just diversity.In an attempt to create diversity we have created other problems that are leading to a failing school system. I
don't think you can truly find a middle ground with three schools. I believe there has to be three. Finally, I wish that the "powers that be" would concentrate on
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I really only care for concept B only.
I really think the IB programs would greatly benefit from being loacted at one facility. All grade levels 1-12 or K-12. With 1 principal and 2 assistant principals.
Would love for the IB programs to stay at the magnet school or at Central High School. I feel teh IB program will lose a lot if the program is split.
I strongly believe in the magnet school model. My oldest was a student at University Place when it was a Montessori program and had a wonderful education. The
transition to Middle school and then High School to schools without that mission driven education was painful. The saving factor of an otherwise disappointing
experience was the incredible devotion of her IB and AP teachers. Please invest in creating these kinds of programs and making them available to all children in our
system and support challenging and engaging curriculum . Our kids are being over tested and under taught because the professionals (Teachers) must override
their desire to create lifelong learners and create "test taking robots".My youngest is having a truly magical educational experience at TMSE. The Spanish, Art , Music and teacher led curriculum development are all so much more nourishing to these incredible forming minds than standardized test driven models. Please offer
these to all kids in the system.
I strongly prefer leaving TMSE and TMSM in their existing facility. At the very least, keep the two programs together and don't place either at a high school. Children do not need to be in the same buidign as high school students. Additionally, I like the idea of a Northridge Middle School. Moving RQMS to the new
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discipline more than the almighty federal dollar. White parents aren't scared of having their kids attend school with African-American kids. If that were true they
wouldn't live in Tuscaloosa, a predominantly African-American region. They want, just like we do to attend a school where there children are safe from discipline
issues regardless of color. Concentrate on discipline and what controls that discipline. IF A CHILD CANNOT FOLLOW THE RULES REPEATEDLY, YOU ARE DOING HIM
AND OUR COMMUNITY A DISSERVICE BY LETTING HIM STAY IN SCHOOL. HE WILL LEARN NOTHING AND HINDER THE LEARNING OF OTHERS.
I really hate to see WFS closed. It has the science lab, garden, and outdoor classroom and nature path. People in the neighborhood use the nature trail and basketball courts. Also it seems to me that there is not s focus on diversity. I don't seem many changes made to the schools north of the river. I also am wondering why
we don't spend some money to have full time art and music at all schools. I want what is best for all our kids. Those north of the river, south of the tiver, and west
end.
I really like D if changes must be made. However, just 2 high schools in regards to sports will be limited.
I really like the D concept -- it pushes the experiential and project learning and extra circular activities down to the middle schools where we are woefully deficient.
And frankly, that’s where we really start to lose our dropouts. Also, most importantly, the two high schools would have brand new start of the art facilities with
similar socioeconomic and race breakdowns. That’s good for everyone. My only complaint on that one is one of the middle schools getting split into two high
schools. I don’t have a good answer for that just yet, but I’m sure there is something that could be fixed there. I also commonly hear that no one is willing to pay
more property taxes for better schools. That is not 100% true and there are plenty of us willing to bite the bullet for our kids and our economic engine. I’m a product of private school and I’d rather pay a few more tax dollars for a top 10 public school system for every Tuscaloosa child than pay private school tuition for just
my children.
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Northridge Middle School opens the possibility of RQES students using the extra space. Verner also deserves a renovation.
I support D because it increases diversity at the high school level. This is where children become individuals and really begin making their own decisions and forming thier own opinions and diversity in our high schools will help. It will also help prepare students for real world situations. I also like D because we have schools
in our system with poor perceptions. These perceptions will never change so the feel that closing the schools and allowing them to have a fresh start for new and
positive perceptions.
I think C is the most viable for our community, but believe the best interest of our city and kids would be to sell the magnet property and use those funds to build
an middle school with appropriate athletic, science and arts facilities. That parcel is so small and does not provide expansion opportunities to allow for this.
I think combining some of the elementary schools is a good idea and working towards getting them newer facilities; however, I think it would be a shame to close
Tuscaloosa Magnet School. On a side note, this survey is beyond confusing. I think it's fair to say that the parents I work with within this school system would have
an extremely difficult time understanding these concepts/options, which totally invalidates the results yielded in surveys or questionnaires.
I think it is critical to recognize that just as some western clusters of neighborhoods no longer want their children bused across town, neither do those of us located
north of the river. We have the athletic and building facilities in place to continue to support two elementary, one middle, and one high school in our area. I am
appalled at the thought that our district has been given the opportunity to utilize mental health property at no cost to build a new middle school and our system is
choosing to not take advantage of that opportunity. Our superintendent and board are showing a lack of vision and leadership for the geographic area that is
showing the most growth in single family households. It is a shame that families are seeking private school options as a result of that lack of vision.
I think many employees are now wondering about job security with all these changes and merging of schools. Employees may seek a different place of employment due to these projections even before the projected date. I see it putting much more responsibility on certain employees with the numbers increasing yet no
compensation for the increased duties for these employees. Principals are the only ones that are compensated by number of students. These certain employees
already feel overwhelmed with the number of students and increasing that number will only bring on more stress.
I think Skyland Elementary needs to be relocated in any option. The building needs to be replaced. I also think the Magnet building/land needs to be sold. Rock
Quarry Middle could be built on Northridge Road in a convenient location for all residents in that area.
I think that schools that are combining should have a new name and an administration team of One principal and server assistant principals. We should be one
force and not two forces fighting against each other in the same building. New name, New administration team, New focus
I think that the size of a high school makes a difference in the positive outcomes in a school environment. The mid to smaller high schools have a better sense of
community and has a positive, supportive culture. I don't think Tuscloosa City Schools should move to a 2 high school model. It will fail. Let's do what's best for
the students.
I think the combination of A and B with addressing the overcrowding of Northridge high school. Being in the 06 area code I enjoy the feel of neighborhood schools
in our area. Dealing with our traffic issues already but trying to get across bridge to magnet school with our traffic combined with university traffic is a bad idea.
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I think the plans are not WELL thought out. There too much money being wasted on changes not should be allowed. IF you want to build a new school do so but, to
shift kids around the way these plans are laid out isn't a great though out process. Adding IB to each middle school is an good idea. The money you want to spend
on new school. Use that money on paper towels, marker, facial tissue , and hand sanitizer something that the teachers need; so the parents don't have to provide
it.
I think the Tuscaloosa Magnet School Middle and The Tuscaloosa Magnet School Elementary SHOULD BE KEPT TOGETHER!!! This will allow students to enter the
first grade and continue to the 8th grade or higher if they implement 1-12 grades. They should not be separated!!
I think this is a waste of time and money. I chose to live where I live because I feel these public schools are best for my children. Now someone wants to go in and
change it. I feel these proposed changes will provide no positive influences for my children.
I think having Pre-K in all schools would be beneficial. I would hope that all teachers and administrators would still secure their current positions.
I understand that the system has to look closely at the system as a whole but I don' think enough thought has been put into the IB program. It seems like an after
thought. Why not create a K-12 magnet school and expand it to make it accessible for all students. If we are looking forward these things need to be more closely
looked at. Also, most of plans put the IB program at risk of failing. If we are doing what is best for children and the system it would be best to keep the program
intact. It would be a great opportunity for our city to offer a k-12 magnet school. Statistics show that any city with at least one Blue Ribbon have higher property
value. The magnet school may only make up 5% of our systems population but it plays an important role in our system. Every child's needs need to be considered
in the entire system! I feel none of these plans work and that they are meeting the political needs but not our students needs. We need to spend more time finding
the perfect option for our students. We should not be afraid to say these plans don't work and we need to go back to the drawing board. These plans affect thousands of students, teachers, staff, and businesses. Lets make sure we get it right!
I was eager to attend the Community Dialogue on April 16, 2015. However, after viewing the concepts presented, I left the meeting with serious concerns about
the effect the proposed changes would have on all students and if the changes would improve students’ learning outcomes any or at all, as well as sense of despair
if significant changes are made to all four concepts. My most serious concerns are: 1.) The approach to create the four concepts is so focused on facilities (square
footage, capacity) and creating diversity at every school that education, curricula, and learning best practices have not been considered and/or incorporated. Massive changes are being suggested with no benchmarked outcomes or plans to improve learning– only plan to improve facility usage and reduce costs. 2.) There are
a few things that TCS excels at, and to cut to the chase, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” The Tuscaloosa Magnet Schools are stellar examples of a program that does
not need to be touched, but rather modeled. TMSE was recently named a national Blue Ribbon School. This is Tuscaloosa’s first and only Blue Ribbon School, and
only a handful of schools in Alabama have ever received this. The idea that a Blue Ribbon School would not be expanded to better fill capacity, as well as used as a
model for other Tuscaloosa schools is inconceivable. Part of the what makes our Magnet Schools work is the continuity of housing grades 1st-8th all together with
a future hope for 9th-12th on the same campus, the fact that EVERY child in Tuscaloosa city has an opportunity to apply, the diversity created by this, and the desire of students to attend. (This spring had an unprecedented number of applicants.) Isn’t this what the School Board and consultants are after to begin with?
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From a parent perspective, a homeowner perspective, and a business, economic, and recruiting perspective for our city, I am strongly urging you to: 1) Reconsider
the treatment of the Magnet Schools and IB program in ALL concepts by DeJong-Richte. Do not split this program up or just plug it in where the square footage and
capacity numbers fit best. It will not continue to be a sought-after, prestigious Blue Ribbon School if it is treated as an after-thought in the future plan. This will hurt
not only Tuscaloosa City School children, but also business and industry recruitment. 2) House ALL of the current and future Tuscaloosa Magnet School (meaning
1st through 12th) on one campus so that its momentum and success continue, and continuity and success flow can into the future high school grades. 3) Consider
expanding enrollment capacity in each Magnet School grade so that more students can attend – and if need be, square footage and capacity are better used. This
can be achieved by keeping the same physical location or using another central location such as Central High School solely as the Tuscaloosa Magnet School.
I would be in support of a single campus for the IB/Magnet program grades 1-12. It makes sense to me to have all the resources on one campus. However, several
[white] parents have said to me they adamantly want it to stay at the current location (former Tuscaloosa Middle School) instead of moving to Central or the TCTA,
but when I press them for reasons they can only give me racist/classist ones (e.g. "I don't think my [white] child will be safe there."). White flight is not just a problem in this town, it's a religion. "If you build it, they will come" doesn't work here, sadly. We have a serious programmatic gap when it comes to the Alberta School
of Performing Arts. Students will move in 9th grade to their zoned high school, which may or may not have continuity of programming, similar approach to learning, etc. There is a prevalent feeling in town that it's a waste of time and effort to send one's child to Alberta, only to have them thrown back into "regular" curriculum after 3 years. I myself am taking this leap of faith with my youngest, who starts at Alberta this fall as a 7th grader. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that she
will be able to make the transition ok in 9th grade - or that the System will offer a continuous arts-based curriculum at one of the high schools that she will be eligible to attend. It is unclear in these plans whether a similar gap with the STEM program at UPMS is going to remain. I would be in support of a single high school.
As a CHS graduate from 1984, I remember well how we dominated in sports and academics. We had several Merit scholars and scholarship recipients, lots of AP
course offerings, etc. I think we could dominate again if we all came together - with program continuity for IB, the Performing Arts and STEM somehow.
I would go back to one great high school if possible, but I have no illusions that D will be the choice with two high schools, but it is the best, because the system can
not afford to buy land and build two new high schools. The entire new plan will be based on socio economic diversity and trying to achieve balance, and I'm not
sure that any plan will achieve that. You would have to split neighborhoods to come close to achieving this, with two streets going north and two going south. Not
going to happen! The plan is like Communism, in theory it is great, in reality, it does not work! Any redrawing of school boundaries will have to include areas that
have the funds to send their children to private schools if they are not convinced that a public school education is best for their child they will be gone. Tough
Choices...Good Luck
I would like for my kids to stay n the same school zone which is southview and northridge
I would like to have Skyland be a Pre-K center!
I would like to see a wider variety of options for two high schools. 9-12 IB breaks the middle years program in 1/2. Myp is 6-10 officially 6-12 is a must. There has
to be more than one way to represent this concept. Concept C - how will new ALB capacity be filled? Re-drawing lines of magnet seats? Does it change also the
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live in numbers for MS and HS? Alberta should eventually become K-12 performing arts.
I would like to see Rock Quarry Middle get a new school.
I would like to see the pre-k programs expanded but housed in neighborhood schools. I would also like to see the high schools go back to just the 2 schools.
I would love if Woodland Forrest remains open. The school is wonderful and the students are well prepared.
I would prefer the school structure of concept A with the feeder structure of concept B or C. It makes no sense to bus the students from Skyland and Southview
completely across town to Northridge for high school.
I would suggest have Magnet IB program at central (K-12)
IB is suited for 1-5, 6-10, 11-12. This should be considered when placing the grades. IB is probably best suited to 1-5 and 6-12 placement.
If Central High School is to become a 6th - 12th grade facility for the IB program, I think it is crucial that grades 6/7/8 grade students remain very separated from 912 students. It's completely inappropriate for 6th and 7th graders to be around 17 year olds (or older) at school.
If I read correctly one elementary school could have 1,000 students and that is two many. I like the plans with more elementary schools which should lead to smaller classes which aids in learning.
If plan D is picked, where would the new high schools be built? What would they be called? Which high school would be erased?
If studenst are enrolled in teh STEAM program, will they be able to attend Northridge because the STEAM program is housed at University Place or will they need
to go to the new feeder school they are zoned for?
If the schools go to a mega-high school concept, I would prefer that the schools have two campuses. One housing 9/10 and the other 11/12. I think the two high
schools should be centrally located.
If you do move these schools, you should also be responsible for moving the gardens that the Druid City Garden Project has put over $12,000 into each individual
garden. Also, each classroom should be able to be a lab, not just one central area.
If you want change do a complete change. That's why I like D. A, B, C are basically the same plan in my opinion
I'm confused by why the only two schools that will undergo no real change are the richest, whitest elementary schools.
I'm incredibly unhappy that every single plan calls for closing Arcadia Elementary. As for option D, I can not imagine how it would be a good idea to have 1st graders and 8th graders at the same facility for the IB program.
I'm really feel like University Place Schools should be zone for Central High feeder pattern.I also think that students in West End near the Country Club should be
zone for Central High feeder pattern as well. The article in Tuscaloosa News states if they zone University Place to Central it will take away Northridge's diversity. I
don't think that it is true. I think Tuscaloosa City School do not want to send the hand full of white students to a predominant black school.
I'm very concerned about lack of diversity in the high schools. Obvioudly Option D would resolve a lot of my issues surrounding that problem but I understand
there are limited resources and time.
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In 2006 a suggestion was made that Central High School should be a magnet school. That would make all three high schools equally diversified both racially and
socially. What happens to the magnet students from the middle school now? Where do they go? Another benefit to ALL high schools to bring up the graduation
rate is to remove all students from the high schools (Northridge, Central, Bryant) who simply do not care about their education and place them at either Stillman
Heights or Oak Hill, permanently. You would then have four high schools. The one being at least a 1A or 2A school with no extra curricular activities. Only core
subjects taught and TCT electives so those students can move into the real world and support themselves with some job skills. Do that and you will see Northridge,
Central, and Bryant High Schools excel in every aspect of the education system. How about a concept of preparing middle school students to be ready for high
school? Really, what is the expectation of an incoming freshman to graduate if he/she is reading on a 3rd or 4th grade level?
In concept A, the size of Northridge is already over capacity before the doors open. The Southview students should not have to be on a bus to travel all the way
across town when they are closely located to a high school. Eastwood is vastly underutilized in this plan. In concept B, Bryant is nearly at capacity when the doors
open. Concept C is the most desirable but it too has Bryant overcrowded when the doors open. And all the middle schools are large. More than 700 sixth through
eighth graders is too many children at that age in a school. Concept D is wonderful but does not seem to be fiscally possible.
In concept B & C there is less diversity in race at Northridge High. We would like to see a concept for one high school.
In Concept B & C, by shifting Skyland & Southview to Bryant HS the Free and reduced lunch population increases at Bryant, while decreasing the F & RL population
at Northridge HS. This will result in a greater difference in economic levels in the 3 high schools. I think we should examine this factor in all recommended changes. If it is necessary to close schools, combine on other campuses, build new schools, etc., this should be done by creating a new entity even with a new name.
Trying to balance two established schools on one campus is not a good workable solution. There is history in the TCS of pairing schools on one campus - two being
temporary due to the tornado and a third back in the 90's with Central Elementary and Central Magnet art, music and drama school. In all three, there was conflict
among the school populations, administration, parents, and community. There are options for 3 high schools and 2 high schools. What about a concept with 1
high school.
In every plan, the elementary schools are all too large. The quality of life for teachers and students diminishes when too many people are packed into a building.
There is less sense of community -- teachers, students, and families who never meet. Gradel-level teams are too large for effective collaboration. Administrators
aren't able to keep tabs on what's going on in that many classrooms -- not enough time for teacher observation and interaction with all students. There are tremendous challenges over sharing limited space. Curriculum gets scheduled around restroom breaks, due to the large demand for limited facilities. Lunch times
wind up being way too early or too late. It's hard to equitably and safely share a playground for recess with so many students.
In reference to the Magnet School, it is important for the continuity of the IB Program, that the Magnet is for K-12 or 1-12 in the same building, preferably located
centrally, such as Central High School, or the current Tuscaloosa School Board located in the downtown area. Also, if research were to be completed on a Sibling
Clause for Magnet Schools across the US, almost 80% have one. Of course, the sibling(s) would still need to meet the minimum score to be admitted and maintain
the academic and behavioral standards set forth. The selection of the students to be admitted into the Magnet School should be evaluated, because there are a lot
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of students admitted, due to the zip code where they live, or the influence their family has in the community, or because they work for the City School Board, the
Magnet School, PTA, or UA. Although the application process and selection process looks good on paper, it is completely unfair, because it is not followed. A complete audit of the current students enrolled, as well as the students recently selected would uncover a myriad of ineligible students being accepted. I like the idea
of two new high schools and condensing the # of Middle Schools. I do not like the idea of combining elementary schools and making mega elementary schools. I
do not like the idea of eliminating the STEAM Middle School. What about a K-12 school for the STEAM Program? It should not be based on a lottery, but standards
set forth for the selection process as well. Or what about attracting students from all over the State of Alabama, by starting a Math and Science School in Tuscaloosa (like the one in Mobile) or a Fine Arts High School (like Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham)?
Increase diversity in all schools.
It appears as though plans B-D propose to eliminate the concerns of the East side of Tuscaloosa. We lose the idea of community schools which is the reason that
most people choose to live in the area that they live.
It concerns me that programs that offer the same curriculum are being split. This does not make educational sense. It would seem teachers could work together
and families of students in the same program would benefit if they were together. Students would have a sense of continuity through their respective programs.
Teachers in the same subject could continue to collaborate and invest students across grade barriers(Arts, P.E., gardening, chess clubs, after-school enrichment,
musical theatre). Why is this option not being explored or presented to the public? Do not certain supplies and resources (science, P.E., instruments, stage, elective, computer labs) not shared in these specialized curriculum programs? Also, Don't these programs require a payment or certification of some kind to be
housed in certain ways (STEAM, IB) according to grade structure? Could the IB program truly be housed in TCTA (OPTION D) because IB is considered high school in
the 11th and 12th grades only? Would there not be added expense to certify TWO middle school programs because of the separate buildings? The city should be
proud of these programs and help to see them succeed. There are many rumors sweeping through the system that these changes could be important to some
because of real estate value and economic opportunity of selling certain campuses rather than just an interest in education and curriculum development of children. I know that there are several sites in the system that are being watched by others wanting to make an opportunity for themselves, and I understand the demographic study has found some capacity issues that must be solved. I feel that the following options could be explored: *House University Place at University
Place and add numbers by targeting students who are interested in certain careers that would then feed TCTA. Students showing strong test scores in Math and
Science should be targeted. Marketing is key to enrollment. Students should see a bridge between the grades of their programs. *House University Place Middle
School at TCTA to encourage continuity. *House the entire p-12 IB Magnet program at the current location. This provides one place for many families of these students to drop off and pick up. This allows families to ride together on the busses. This eliminates the need to build an additional space on the Central campus which
has already been designed for sports and parking. It also allows for sharing of facilities between teachers, staff, and admin who understand a common goal and
curriculum. The building also has room for the 9-12 grades. It also has new security upgrades that the system has already paid for, as well as additional wiring to
handle technology load that the system has already paid for. The high school could be housed in the empty space in the school. Each section of the school is wired
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to only be accessed by particular security clearance, and this is ideal for separate grades within the same building. These options would allow room for growth and
an identity for these programs. *Tell the community the wonderful things that are going on! I know there is an effort, but frankly very few people hear about the
wonderful things in our system. Schools will grow when positivity comes out! Ask the students! Ask the teachers! Ask the parents! Small gains in the classroom are
big gains for the community! If someone learned their site words for the week, or made All State Music competition, or succeeded in Spanish, these are the building blocks for our community. Put heart and connection into publicizing! Tuscaloosa is proud and should be proud of these programs. Let's do what's best for the
education of ALL children, and remember that each child goes to a different school with different educational needs. No one should take a backseat to the best
education our community can provide--not the struggling child or the excelling child. This is a time of growth and expansion. Let's not back ourselves into corners
that force us to build more and more in the future, or encouraging pulling out to charter or private schools! Sometimes giving matters a little time can help 'clear
the water' and give perspective. Thank you for being concerned with the educational future of our children.
It is difficult for me to detect much difference between A and B. Plan D seems excellent but how realistic is it? I am zoned for University Place but send my kids to
private school (currently 3rd and 1st grade). I would love to send my kids to Univ. Place and eventually to Central High School, but their current reputations are
poor. Selection for the Magnet system does not seem to be fair. I would prefer not to drive north of the river for middle or high school. So if one of the plans
would see improvement in Univ. Place and Central, I would support it.
It seems like a better idea to bring Alberta students to Northridge since they're closer than Southview. Southview could go to Bryant.
It simply does not make sense to build two high school that would house fewer students than the the three high schools that are currently in use. Rezone and use
the current structures.
Its absolutely ridiculous to build two new high schools in the name of demographics. This option D is fiducially irresponsible. Option A is the best and most fair
option. Why is it that RQMS is the only middle school that doesn't have its own facilities. The land is available and should be used as it was intended.
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It's hard to understand how all this will look in practice, but here are some priorities I would like to see pursued: 1. Put the IB program into on K-12 or 1-12 building by itself. This would allow the sharing of facilities across grades. Also make the IB program larger so that more students have access to it. This is the most successful program the district has. The district should be building on it, not tearing it apart. 2. If the IB program has to share a building with another school, the
building must have full facilities for each program. That means at least two gyms, two cafeterias, two music rooms, etc. Sharing these facilities is too difficult. You
can't teach 10 hours of PE in a 7 period day. 3. Each school should match the racial and socioeconomic distribution of the district as a whole. This may mean we
move away from neighborhood schools. That is okay. Tuscaloosa is not so large that anyone will have to travel very far to school. It is critical that we prevent particular schools becoming known as a "black school" or a "white school." Doing all we can to overcome the continuing effects of slavery and segregation is very important. That is one of the reasons I like the current magnet school so much: the racial make-up f the school largely matches that of the district as a whole.
It's ridiculous having people vote on these options when you haven't even decided what the zoning will look like. I have no confidence in any of these plans at this
point.
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I've looked at all three (now four) concepts and studied all the information publicly available. I am not wholly in favor of any of them. Concept D is the one I personally favor most even though it is going to be very, very costly. It needs some adjustment though.
Just do whatever it takes to reduce the cost of maintenance (fewer buildings), fewer administrators (free up salary $), and don't bus these poor students all over
the world, spending as much time on a bus as they do quality time in a classroom, for the sake of politics. Be logical.
Just wonder how the Pre-K will be divided amongst home schools and Pre-K centers. Would like to know more. I like Option C but feel/think UPE should be moved
to CHS feeder pattern.
K-12 IB should be in a building by itself like at Central HS or current building. University Place is not a neutral enough location for IB if IB is a system opportunity.
Keep in mind that the Druid City Garden Project's school gardens need to be moved and/or rebuilt by the school system if schools are relocated. Instead of a
"project-based learning lab" built in each elementary school, the school system should adopt a Druid City Garden Project garden in every elementary school.
DCGP's gardens are far more effective than the PBL labs that are currently in place in the district and they will be less expensive to install and manage. There is important data to back this up provided by a study that the University of Alabama has done.
Keep STARS separate. Sell the current Tuscaloosa Middle School Magnet Property to the Univ. and use the proceeds to pay for a new Middle School Building for
the Northridge feeder zone
Keep STARS seperate. B & C would be better with a new north of the river MS.
Keep the core focus on education. If a population wants something different than let them continue to home school, seek private schools and stop making the
population that has to depend on the school system suffer. All of this boils down to modern day segregation.
Kids should go to the nearest school to them. We're wasting too much money in transportation sending kids all over the city.
Least for Concept D ( too many students). Support 1 IB school program K-12. Support Pre-K program at all schools. Support students together based on academic
performance.
Leave the schools how they are and redistrict with more equity!
Let the students go to the school that bests fits their learning environment.
Like C but with possibly selling magnet and building new middle north of river. Also like D for facilities for middles.
Love Concept D except the middle school.
Love the idea of involving more students at TCT.
Magnet should stay together if possible and should not be moved to a high school, particularly Central. Explore new magnet facility with re-purposing existing larger magnet facility to middle school concepts as in B/C.
Magnet to UPES and Central. Combine Arcadia and Northington. Move Rock Quarry Middle to TMS. Leave Woodland Forrest as is. Build as little as possible
Maintain 3 high schools at 814 each. Immediate priority reducing capacity at NR. Students from Southview ES, UP, and Skyland bused across town.
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Maintaining separate but equal schools is unethical I feel. The plans that place 2 schools into 1 shared building would be bad for a sense of community and create
an atmosphere of haves and have nots I fear. If you consolidate schools, I suggest creating a whole new school with one new identity.
Make 1 large high school (10-12) with a contained IB program. Have a separate freshman academy.
Make sure the buildings are properly staffed with suppport services, more specifically custodial.
Make Woodland Forrest a better facility.
Map is not clear in online survey. Where is this designation?
My biggest disagreement with the options provided comes in the approach to the Magnet School that has been taken. The Magnet School has been a huge success. It gives Tuscaloosa as a community the ability to promote its nationally recognized public school to businesses looking to relocate. Why all 4 options essentially destroy the only Blue Ribbon School in Tuscaloosa (and it's highest rated school in state rankings), instead of trying to expand on that success is difficult to
understand. It seems extremely short sighted. We should be considering the expansion of the Magnet School to include a High School and look to contain the entire program all under one roof - whether its at the current location or some other location doesn't matter. Also we should look at expanding the Magnet program
to offer the opportunity to more of Tuscaloosa's students. The concept of an IB school within a school has already been tried in Tuscaloosa with the IB program at
Central. My understanding is that program graduates roughly 5 students a year, and annually almost no Magnet Middle School Students matriculate to the high
school IB program. That sounds like a waste of valuable resources and unfortunately that is the future of IB education in Tuscaloosa if one of these options is selected without changes. You need look no further than Montgomery Alabama's Magnet High School - LAMP - to see the value of a separately operated magnet
program. LAMP currently ranks as the top high school in the state and was recently ranked as one of the top 20 public schools in the nation. Do you think that
helps Montgomery in attracting new businesses - hello Hyundai. There is no reason we can't do the same here in Tuscaloosa, in fact, we've already started down
that path. A lot of thought and hard work went in to achieving the success that the Magnet School has had to date and it seems almost shameful to toss that all
aside - which is what all 4 proposals do. Please carefully reconsider the approach to the Magnet School and the value it brings to Tuscaloosa's students and the
community as a whole.
My children go to University Place Elementary and Middle and its too far to travel to Eastwood for my middle school child to go.
My husband and I transferred our elementary aged children out of private school to public thinking that at the elementary level there would not be that much of a
difference in the teaching. We have been HIGHLY disappointed with the system as a whole. It blows my mind that so much money can be spent, and in my opinion wasted, on building new buildings and shifting children around when there is no money being spent to teach them anything other than how to take a test in
the Spring. The system does not do an adequate job of providing programs for their "gifted" students. By law the system is required to provide special education
programs not only for those students who are behind, but gifted students as well. I guess providing one day of Enrichment is just enough so that the state doesn't
say you're not fulfilling your obligations. It is sad that these kids are taught no real life skills. They're only taught to test. Unfortunately, you can't blame the teachers or the administrators because I understand that their hands are tied. They must teach what is handed down from City Board. I completely understand why
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more and more people are pulling their children from public schools and putting them in private schools each year. We have made a decision to go back ourselves.
You will continue to lose students to private education if the school system does not wake up and realize that it does not matter what kind of building these children are sitting in. If they are not taught the necessary skills to compete with their peers in surrounding states and countries, you are failing them and us. NONE of
these concepts sound promising. As a parent I would NOT want my middle school aged child to be housed on a campus with high schoolers. There is a HUGE
difference between a 6th grader and a high schooler and I don't care how much you may try to keep the two schools separate, you will end up with huge problems
before it is all said and done. I feel ALL concepts need to go back to the drawing board and perhaps money spent in other areas that will truly make a difference.
My issue is with the two schools on one campus. This would create tensions among the children. However, I think politics should not play a role in those concepts.
Which it appears to.
My main concern is that the children continue to get the best education they deserve. My other concern is the overcrowding of the schools and also the distance
that parents have to travel to get kids to the school they are zoned for. I, myself being african american went to a diverse school, it was an equally amount of african americans and caucasian at the elementary, middle, and high schools. Now where my son goes it is 80% african american and I have a problem with that. I
wish that in the thinking process that this problem can be fixed in some type of way. Option D I have like and don't like. I feel like the middle schools would still
be very crowded. I love the idea that the kids would get access to a facility that has the equipement for athletics, drama class, science labs, computer labs, and ect.
That part is awesome, because some middle schools do not have that access.
My youngest child goes to TMSE. We live in the RQ school district. I love the IB program, but will be hesitant in sending my child all the way to Central for Middle
School. Not a great option for us.
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NEED MORE DIVERSITY IN THE CITY SCHOOLS. OVER SEVERAL YEARS THERE HAVE BEEN REZONING PLANS TO FURTHER SEGREGATE THE SCHOOL AND BY ZONING
UNIVERSITY PLACE WILL DO JUST THIS.
Need strong administrative staff at board and school level. Concerned about lack of discipline in schools now which make conditions difficult for children who want
to learn.
Need to keep IB together - prefer 1-12. Ned to have adequate special ed at each school (classrooms, teachers, aides, therapy space). Prefer building new RQMS
than TMS. Need to fix capacity problems at NHS. Concept A - does not fix any problems we are currently having.
New construction middle school for rock quarry and university place is a must!!!!
New facilities is not what is needed to improve our schools. Building a new school will not make strong schools. Large elementary schools is not what is wanted or
needed in our community. The Eastern Cluster gets totally demolished in all of these options. We have some wonderful and strong schools existing as they are in
the Eastern Cluster. Allow them to stay that way and make improvements. Maintain and improve the existing buildings. Fix, improve or make more fair the programs offered at schools across the district and equalize funding before spending so much money creating a new facility. Create interest groups in each school that
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identify it's strengths and weaknesses and allow them to create a plan make the strengths stronger and improve the weaknesses. My suggestion...Make the addition onto Central High for the IB Middle Years program, Relocate IB Primary Years program to University Place Elementary, Sell the current Magnet School site,
Build the new RQMS on the gifted land that has the 2 year deadline, build a new PreK facility. Leave the rest of the district as is.
No elementary school should have over 400 students
No purpose in two schools being housed together but operating separately. This is top heavy admin and a waste. If you chose to consolidate, then see it through.
Each concept includes closing Tuscaloosa magnet. Stop pandering to the university of Alabama green for city property. Concept D - use magnet property for this
high school.
None of the concepts are appealing to me.
None of these are acceptable for student success at the highest level academically. When is this District/School Board going to learn that parents will not send
their children to schools in bad areas. Our child is at Verner, but we have many friends that have kids at the Magnet School. These parents are very respectable
faculty members at UA, and have mentioned about leaving and going to another University town that is more academically in tune with its members. Obviously,
none of these options affect Verner, so that is OK. However, I highly suggest that you have keep the Magnet School intact and have 1st-12th grades in the same
place. It does not take a rocket scientist to see that the IB program is dead at its current location! Our son could be in the IB Program, but not at Central! Keeping
this program intact and at its current site will ensure its success and will highlight this School District as one of the best in the State. I would love to send our child
prodigy there in the future. As it now stands, we will be forced to go to Holy Spirit or TA beginning in 6th grade.
North river is a growing area. New subdivisions are currently being built and new ones are planned. Northridge high is over capacity at 108.5% while Central at
86.9% and Bryant at 74.5% are underutilized. If you do not rezone some children or expand Northridge High you will have to add portable classrooms in the near
future. Also, a new Middle school should be built north of the river. North of the river received half of a middle school when it was constructed that has to share a
lunchroom, library, playgrounds, etc. with the elementary school. While Eastwood middle, Southview, and Westlawn received huge new middle schools with all
the amenities of a middle school. Rock Quarry Middle children deserve to have a complete middle school not just a piece of one. Free Land is available from the
Mental Health Department near Northridge High to build a new Middle School. North river will continue to grow and expand and new facilities need to be added
to this area.
Northridge desperately needs relief. This is the reason I went with concept B and C. Concept A would be worth considering if changes were made to Northridge
regarding the number of students.
Not pleased with any of the options.
Not sure why any buildings would be repurposed for something else and not have students in them. For example, if Rock Quarry Middle school is in good condition
and can hold students, why can't that school remain open with students and still build a new middle school. If we are trying to space out children and provide more
room for them to learn and not be overpopulated, we should be using every building we have available and provide new buildings. Why can't some students be
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rezoned to the new school while leaving others at the pre-existing schools?
One of the most important factors to consider when making this decision is who is going to school with whom. Are schools segregated by race (http://nces.ed.gov/
ccd/districtsearch/district_detail.asp?start=0&ID2=0103360; click "schools for this district") and class (see D-R's maps)? The city's current data says yes. One of the
dangers of largely segregated schools is that they allow students to think that their experiences are universal. When our students get a little bit older and begin
taking leadership roles in our community, they will be much readier to lead with insight and empathy if they have had the opportunity to attend school with children of other races and socioeconomic statuses. Concept D appears to take us closest in that direction. By creating two high schools, it allows students from north
of the river and the West End to attend school together without any overcrowding. If we keep three high schools but change the boundaries slightly, we run the
risk of quickly changing them back. The two high school option forces us to redefine our expectations and has the potential of being a long-term and effective solution. The federal government does not make segregated schools an option; it's time to make moves.
Only Concept D guarantees full athletic and arts facilities for all MS - this is not acceptable - this should be guaranteed in all options. I am in favor of C if it would
include a new middle school north of the river. I have concerns about the enrollment and capacity percent use numbers for RQMS. My children are at RQMS and
they are so overcrowded facility wise. Seems low to me so I question it's accuracy.
Option B would work better if Tusc. Magnet closed and a new middle school be built to feed into N'ridge. Everything else is doable. Option D would work in a perfect world but it is extremely expensive.
Option C but with a new RQMS built near NHS high school. Sell TMS. Ensure that Northridge has reduced enrollment.
Option D places TMS grades 1-8 at UP with UP elementary. Those numbers will not add up. Too many students for the space. Do not close Woodland Forest. That
is an important building and resource for the community and should be renovated to address any issues that do exist. Everyone that attended the large Central
high school loved the experience. I keep hearing the work powerhouse. Why not 1 large highschool instead of 2. Make Central a K-12 IB school. There were over
500 applications this year for 72 spaces in the elementary school. Many very high performing students are interested in the IB program and with the opportunity
for expansion and growth, the TCS could provide that education opportunity for more students. Also, Druid City Garden Project has invested thousands of dollars
in the creation of school gardens at many of the schools that are under consideration for closure or consolidation. The schools have also raised and invested thousands of dollars to support the gardens and the education opportunity it provides the students. The cost of moving the gardens needs to be considered as this process moves forward. The DCGP is one of the more progressive education opportunities that the TCS has supported.
Options C and D seem expensive and unnecessary. Renovating buildings and redrawing zone lines would eliminate lots of issues.
Our children are currently zoned for Northridge High School. Our daughter will graduate in 2017, and our son will graduate in 2020. They both attended Southview
Elementary, but our son moved to the Magnet school in 3rd grade. We want them both to graduate from Northridge and not from Bryant. We oppose all concepts except A because Concept A does not move our children from Northridge.
Our high schools are in excellent condition. Terribly wasteful to spend 10's of millions on new buildings. The community is too attached to Central High to do away
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with 35 years of tradition.
Out of all of the concepts in the packet I believe that Concept A is the only practical solution. Concept A makes some reasonable changes that would benefit some
students without costing the district a lot of money. It too needs some tweaking but it is the only one I could endorse. I also like it because Rock Quarry Middle,
after all these years of sharing with the elementary and the horror of the traffic issues would gain a new building. In concepts B,C and D they get an old building
with a few modifications, while ALL THE OTHER MIDDLE SCHOOLS ARE IN MUCH NICER, NEWER BUILDINGS. RQMS needs a new facility not to be moved out of its
community. We need a new middle school. The land is already been purchased. Stop catering to the "sqeaky" wheel of the Southern and West End communities.
They have a new Southview elementary and middle school, a new Westlawn middle school, the new TCTA building, and the new Central High School, which is 2
years newer than Bryant and Northridge. The list just goes on and on. Moving Rock Quarry Middle school to the other side of the river will cause more transportation issues for the majority of the students and their families. You will need more buses, which in turn uses more gas, etc. I also feel that it will lead to a more noticeable white flight issue. Look at the boundaries closely!!! Why would the students south of town still be coming to the new northern high school in Concept D?
Why? Those kids are on a bus for 45 minutes or more in the morning. Why? They cannot feel part of their school community because they cannot participate in
sports, clubs or even tutoring opportunities at NHS. Wake up people. I'm sorry. Call it the way it is. You are afraid of the "African-American" community and how
things look. Heaven forbid that we have a majority white school. Why is okay to have an all black school but not a majority white school. Not all white, just majority. Why can't we simply think of what is best of our kids. I firmly believe that what is best is allowing our kids to attend schools in or close to their community, being on a bus for less than 20 minutes, having the chance for every student to participate in extracurricular activities, and having class sizes less than 25 at the high
school level and 20 or less at the middle and elementary levels. You are not even thinking of the kids in several of these plans. You are more worried about
"political correctness" and "money" than the students of the Tuscaloosa City School district. I agree that 2, maybe 3 of the elementary schools need to be consolidated and new schools built for those kids, but that is all the new construction needed. Why does the district always want to build new schools instead of addressing the real issues and correcting them. It makes me question if someone enjoys the kickbacks that come with new construction projects. You need to turn your
attention to the "Evergreen" report. The Central Office is where significant changes need to be made. We are very, very top heavy. Many, many positions could be
cut and consolidated at the Central office. This would save thousands, upon thousands each year. Let's keep our focus on our kids and what is best for ALL OF
THEM!!!
Plan E: Community Elementary Schools, Grade Level Middle Schools,, 9-10 High Schools, 11-12 High School
Please let the Magnet School stay like it is now. That school is a top rated school. Why can't all the IB students be school together at the Magnet School. It's a
great academic school. I am considering taking my child to private school of there us no Magnet School.
Please allow the Druid City Garden Project to move their garden with the school. Financial assistance would also be helpful. They have put a lot of time and money
into these gardens and the students are learning so much with these outdoor gardens. Keep in mind safety concerns with combining schools especially on the
westside. Security officers should be increased at these schools as well as having an assistant principal.
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Please consider a K-12 IB program. TMSE is a national blue ribbon program. I do nto see why you would not make that a shining star for the city system. Please do
not disrupt our children who have worked so hard to be part of such a wonderful program.
Please do not go through with this simply to appease one segment of our school system. Consider the system as a whole. We do not need to increase class sizes.
We need to simply build a new middle school for the northern cluster and continue working to increase gains in other parts of the district. Please do not uproot
anything that does not require it.
Please maintain the continuity of the magnet school K-12 please.
Prefer Concept C. However, sell Tecualoosa Magnet facility and build a new RQMS beside Northridge HS. Keep enrollment equally distributed among the three
high schools. Keep enrollment as low as possible for each high school. STARS kids need their own facility.
Prefer kids to stay together from 6-12. Not to mix middle schools into 1 high school. Athletic programs need have an emphasis.
Prefer smaller size middle schools to help with smaller class size, more sports teams (1 per school) - important for more children to be able to participate in sports,
clubs, etc. Middle school is a challenging age and believe smaller school size helps with more student involvement with sports academic groups, opportunities to
find areas to excel and enjoy learning.
Problems all start at the top. Neighborhood schools. Core improvements.
Really do not agree with the high school starting with grades 6-12.
really would like for things to stay the same
Redistricting/boundary lines are in desperate need.
Renovated Arcadia!!!!!
Research on effective schools does not support the idea of large elementary schools. Why would our system spend millions of dollars on new facilities when we
are cutting teacher units? One of the major issues in the system is that there is no racial diversity in the schools except at Arcadia Elementary. It makes no sense
that a school with true racial diversity and rising test scores should be dissolved. We already have new buildings across this system that are under utilized and unattended. Although a demographic study is important, shuffling people from place to place will only make the pull-out from the system greater and will not solve
the problems with student achievement.
Rock Quarry needs a new middle school.
Schools need to be more integrated. Don't rezone or move schools around to make them more white or black.
Since the options online don't match what was handed out, I can't really be sure that what I am ranking is accurate. Data from this will be invalid. Below are my
thoughts on the changes to Option D that would make it the best option. The system would be best served by a k-12 IB school that would allow for more kids to
participate and would continue with the success that they have had. All of the current plans would not allow for growth beyond the addition of 9th and 10th
grades That is vital but, more kids should be allowed to participate in IB at each grade level. Each year many apply who are turned away because of lack of space.
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As we propose bigger and bigger elementary campuses, the size of the Ib should be bigger as well. I do not believe that we have the enrollment to adequately support 3 high schools. Decatur, Dothan, and Hoover (the three similar sized city school districts in Alabama) each only have two high schools and are all able to offer
more to their students because of it. I also caution the use of school within a school or shared facilities. I would prefer that k-2 and 3-5 schools be formed to eliminate confusion over who goes where and the notion that one may be better or worse than another in the same building or on the same land. I also urge that the
configuration of Alberta be examined. A successful fine arts school is usually 4-12, not k-8. The block schedule will make it more and more difficult for the arts to
thrive in our traditional high schools. A 4-12 fine arts school would allow older students to fine tune their arts at an age when that is more possible, given maturity
and development. The current configuration allows only that arts be exploratory before kids are sent to traditional high schools. If we really want to invest in the
arts, then we should make it developmentally appropriate and competitive. Moving the middle school out of west end will make it harder for children to get to
school and for parents to be a part. Leaving Westlawn in their current building but rezoning some of the Southview and/or UPMS students to that campus is a
better option.
Some schools need more diverse populations. Concept D would provide that. However, I know two new high schools are not likely to be built, so zoning lines
should be reconsidered to provide the needed diversity.
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Special programs, gardens, and outdoor classrooms should be included in the decision making when moving, closing, or consolidating schools. Considerations
should also be given as to how these changes will effect student achievement. Just as student-teacher ratios have reached acceptable levels to improve student
achievement, we now want to increase the ratio which will lessen student achievement? At risk students need lower teacher-student ratios so they can have more
one-on-one and small group instruction with teachers. Extra facilities provide for more opportunities for special programs and activities in the schools from outside sources like community groups, the University of Alabama, and other businesses/organizations.
Staffing is more important than renovations or consolidating schools. Solution: If you could think about the 90's when there were 2 high schools, 3 middle schools
and 10 ES, and what made this so effective. Yes, the funds that the city had have to utilized/or they will go to waste. If having an IB program is so important and
will help our children why 6-12 grade levels have to be together.
Students in grades 6-12 should not be in one school.
Thank you TCS for this opportunity: all children should have science early on, fine-arts integration, foreign language, small classroom sizes, and project-based learning as is the basis of early education to be competitive in the future at the University and career level. As for renovation of Verner Elementary, it would be necessary to please add more teachers and/or classrooms if the student pool expands to keep up the high level of learning that is happening now. We are in favor of
small high schools, unless there are specialization options within the HS. Above all, we prefer moving Rock Quarry MS to the present Northridge HS building if Rock
Quarry MS must close.
The best plan possible would be option B except for one important change. The construction of a NEW middle school for rock quarry middle and university place
middle should be added into plan B INSTEAD of sticking them in the old magnet school building. That is the change that needs to take place. Keeping the rest of
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plan B the same.
The biggest reason I like concept B is because it keeps schools in a more general area like a neighborhood school and with concept A, it seemed to farm out some
kids to a school on the other side of Tuscaloosa.
The boundaries still are very uneven. You still have students sitting on a bus for 45 min. traveling from The Links (which should be zoned county since they are
close to Hillcrest HS) to Northridge HS. Central Office staff definitely is way too top heavy. They need to have at least 10 fewer positions that are not needed.
Think of the money that will save! Those people are creating work for others just to justify their jobs. The only new school that needs to be built is Rock Quarry
Middle School on the land that we already have. The students would not have to travel to get to the Tuscaloosa Magnet School. You are adding travel time and
taking away the sense of community school if you make the students north of the river travel every day. One or two new elementary schools could be in the plan
for the future, but overcrowding could be alleviated with just changing the boundaries and redistributing the Southern End of Tuscaloosa City at the high school
level. High School students should not pass by two schools that are not overcrowded to come to NHS. Those students cannot participate in after school tutoring,
sports, or extra-curricular activities like drama because they are not attending a community school where parents live close to where they work, in most cases.
Consider combining elementary schools that have around 100 students total (like MLK, Northington, Central Primary, Oakdale) and getting rid of duplicate positions (in the administrative areas)at those schools. Concept A is by far the best plan overall, but I think it could be tweeked to combine the suggestions above. The
total live in populations at all three high schools should be under 100%. There is no way they are equal now or in any of the plans with three high schools. And you
should not even consider ever having only two high schools for this size "live in" population. Wrong and very misguided to think this will work smoothly in any area! Anyone who has not visited NHS classes recently should NOT be making the decision to decrease the number of high schools in the future.
The children that are already zoned for northridge and are currently going should not have to move
The city and county schools need to be working TOGETHER on this initiative. Not to mention the city of Northport. We are ONE COMMUNITY. City schools like Bryant should be sold to the county, and county schools like Matthews should belong to the city. All this busing and line drawing around poverty stricken areas is creating racial and socioeconomically segregated schools. THAT IS NOT OK!
The concept of neighborhood schools has been proven to work across the state of Alabama. Tuscaloosa is growing and needs to stay focused on it's commitment
to neighborhood schools.
The concepts for the specialty schools are very troubling under all of the plans. There is no specialty school for the new Albert to funnel into. Further, the Magnet
School is the best school our city currently offers. The current concepts (with the possible exception of concept D) put the program in serious jeopardy. It is highly
unlikely that an IB middle school will succeed when housed on a high school campus. Further, simply requiring that those who wish to participate in the IB program
go to Central is not going to correct the problems at Central. The IB program was successful when Central served the entire system. It has dwindled and no longer
boasts significant participation or a significant passage rate on the IB exam. Keeping the IB program at Central has not corrected the lack of diversity at Central in
the high school years and is even less likely to correct the problem by moving the middle school students to the same school. The idea of a single school that serves
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The current gardens on the campuses of Woodland Forrest, Oakdale, and Tuscaloosa Magnet Elementary, should be moved and reimplemented if those schools
are closed/re-located/combined. The garden education program offered by the Druid City Garden Project should be instated as the "project-based learning lab"
component in all elementary education.
The current high schools are nice and new. There is no need to spend money on new construction of new middle or high schools. The only middle school that TCS
needs is a new Rock Quarry Middle. They have only one hall which was added on to an elementary school. They share a library and cafeteria with the elementary
school. Bryant and Westlawn have their own middle schools and can't compare facilities with RQMS.
The current Magnet school may be under capacitated at the moment and perhaps that is why the system seems quick to want to move the students into other
buildings but is has been petitioned and discussed to add grades 9-10 and possibly 11th and 12th. The building as it stands now would accommodate that quite
nicely. I vote to leave the school as it is with the current grades so there will be room to grow this wonderful program. Being a part of the IB Magnet School program has been a true delight and these kids deserve to get to keep their home :)
The Druid City Garden Project school gardens need to be moved and/or rebuilt by the school system if schools are relocated Instead of a "project-based learning
lab" built in each elementary school, the school system should adopt a DCGP garden in every elementary school. DCGP's gardens are far more effective than the
PBL labs that are currently in place in the district and they will be less expensive to install and manage.
The Druid City Garden Project's (DCGP) school gardens need to be moved and/or rebuilt by the school system if any of the affected schools are relocated 2. Instead
of a "project-based learning lab" built in each elementary school, the school system should adopt a DCGP garden in every elementary school. DCGP's gardens are
far more effective than the PBL labs that are currently in place in the district and they will be less expensive to install and manage.
The growing population north of the river needs to be addressed. Rock Quarry Elementary, Verner Elementary, RQMS, and Northridge will not be able to serve our
students in the future is something is not done to address the growing population in theses districts.
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the specialty school needs would be promising. TMS is easily divided in a way that the different school age students do not overlap significantly. It would take relatively little modification to that school to allow it to house all of the specialty school needs. I also find it confusing that one of the problems we set out to correct is
excess capacity but every plan proposed provides for building new schools. The taxpayers voted to increase taxes to support the schools. This money needs to be
used to help the programs in the schools, not to build new schools or raise more funds from the taxpayers over time to pay for new construction. Additionally, the
proposals provide for constructing space for project based learning. This is illogical. The Magnet schools are project based schools but the elementary does not
have labs for this purpose. The projects are mostly accomplished with computers offered in the classrooms. Further, concepts A and C already have schools exceeding their capacity. How will this be addressed? It makes no sense to do a serious redo of the schools where the result is to exceed the capacity from the beginning. Concept A is perhaps the worst as it continues the extreme busing which no one in the system likes (every single one of the very diverse group at my table
wanted to reduce busing - a plan which would also save money) and continues the overcapacity at Northridge. Finally, while concept D has several appealing aspects, including the best plan of the 4 for the IB program, spending millions of dollars constructing 2 new high schools and 1 elementary does not seem wise.
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The highest priority coming out of public feedback previously was to reduce socioeconomic segregation in our schools. Options A-C do not seem to address this at
all and option D has limited utility in this respect and will be expensive. Why weren't options that redistributed students based on socioeconomic factors without
requiring the building of all new high schools presented?
The IB program is 1-5, 6-10 and 11-12. Splitting them up with 1-8, 9-12 will not work or it will require multiple coordinators for the Middle Years Program. Concept
D will not work effectively as studies indicate that super large high schools are ineffective at educating students. Why would we ever want to put 6,000 students in
one building! Instead of trying to build 2 sports powerhouses, keep the schools as small as possible so that the best education can be given to ALL students. Also,
school within a school concepts don't really work and they also don't save money for our students. Why would we purposefully put 2 schools in one buildingAlberta/Magnet was an emergency situation. To truly consolidate a school is to get one administration.
The IB program needs to be housed in one building. I am concerned about 6th graders sharing facilities with 12th graders. What about sports for the IB program?
The IB/Magnet school needs it's own K-12 school. Not a big fan of TMSE at University Place School. My son was at UPES and we are very excited to leave it.
The ideal sounds good but we know that it will not happen. The schools will never be equal.
The key point of public concern will be the detailed redrawing of district lines. Without those data I cannot fully evaluate, so my assessments of the plans are at
best tentative. Furthermore the charter school bills advancing through the legislature may have direct impact on all these decisions. It may be best to delay action
until 1) specific district lines are proposed and 2) the charter school question is more fully resolved. That said, one option that was conspicuously absent from the
choices was a unified city-wide high school as once existed here.
The lack of options over splitting the Magnet School and University place elementary and middle school grades appears that the direction of those programs is not
a part of this study and decision.
The magnet (IB) program should stay in one building for grades 1-8. Moving IB middle (608) into Central may cause issues by having young, mostly gifted kids, in
the same building as much older kids, many of whom do not respect "geeks." I don't see a real reason to close the current magnet facility and move that program
to other buildings. Other goals can be accomplished without touching the Magnet facility. Overall, none of the plans strike me as very good. I understand that Rock
Quarry Middle is overcrowded and some elementary schools are underutilized. But that can be fixed with less dramatic changes to the overall system. Also, the
district needs a real high school IB program, where 9-10 graders are separated from 11-12, as IB requires. More IB (Magnet) kids would then stay in the program
through high school.
The magnet IB program has won numberous accolates since it was established. It should be valued much more than just an after thought. 3 out of 4 proposals will
move magnet middle to central high. It is not a good idea to send middle school kids to mingle with high school kids who may pick on them. As a parent, I can
guarantee I can't have my 12 daughter mixing with 18 yo boys who may see the school as unusual or weird. So by having magnet middle within a high school that
is not all IB will mean you are basically killing one of the best schools that tuscaloosa has to offer. I understand that one of the reasons behind that is the IB high
school is at central, but it is currently just a handful of students there. It will become even smaller when the parents will no longer send their kids to central for
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middle IB years, let alone high school. I am frustrated as a parent, when we have something in Tuscaloosa that is a shining star, that the system would not support
it wholeheartedly. My suggestion is either moving the entire IB program 1-8 to University Place, and use Central HS as a specialty HS for the IB as well as for the
performing arts and STEM schools. Or converting central to an exclusive IB school grades 1-12. the IB magnet program has become more and more successful, so it
can be expanded very easily since it has enjoyed an increasing number of applicants each year. It would be great to build on that momentum and have students
that will graduate with IB degrees. If central can be converted to a specialty high school, more kids can also graduate from the STEM as well as the performing arts
programs. As of now, I don't believe those students have anywhere to go to continue in their special curriculum. The IB program is very strong in technology and
the arts. so those 3 schools should be able to share their resources. I understand the city school administrators have to make decisions for ALL of the students, not
just the minority of magnet students, however, I am concerned that by placing a small school into a large one will intimidate the younger kids as well as an administrative nightmare. We shared the TMSE with Alberta for the last few years, and it was not well run. I do think plan D makes the best sense for increasing diversity and not making the kids travel as far to go to their schools. it is ridiculous how some of the kids from south of town having to be bussed to north of town, while
passing a under utilized school that is just a few blocks away. I am proud to be at TMSE right now since it has the most diversity compared to any other school in
our system. Another issue is sports. If we have 2 new high schools, they will have their own sports programs, we should also have one at the specialty central high
school. this way the kids will not have to choose between academics and athletics. thanks for your time and careful consideration. sincerely, Joanne Myers,
M.D. MPH
The Magnet School has been highly successful. It is very conveniently located and nice for parents that have multiple children at the school. Do not move this facility.
The Magnet School should be massively renovated if it is to be continued to be used at all. It looks like the school I went to in the 80's and it was at least 10 years
old then. It is a good location, but please make it nice and new looking for whoever attends at that location. Maybe just demolish it and rebuild.
The most important consideration for me, more than who goes where, or what schools are kept or closed, is that Tuscaloosa's public school become racially, ethnically, and economically diverse, and that school districts are drawn in such a way that will allocate equal or nearly equal resources to all our students. Whatever
plan is decided upon, it will be a failure if it does not address the deep inequalities in our public school system.
The most important issue is to maintain equal diversity between all general public schools in the system and to continue development and support for all current
and future specialized educational tracks. So much progress has been made and work done on the part of administration, faculty, staff and students to attain IB
certification within our system. This should be carefully nurtured and protected. An ideal citywide system will allow opportunities for students' unique interests,
talents and abilities, as well as ensure that no school in the system has a primary socioeconomic advantage over others.
The old Tuscaloosa Middle School building is prime property to be sold to the University. With the tremendous growth the University has seen in recent years, that
property would be snatched up immediately due to its proximity to campus. HOWEVER, in no way am I in favor of this occurring so that two new high schools can
be built. Building two new high schools - plus the required athletic grounds for said schools - when we just built CHS, PWBHS, and NHS in the early 2000s is ludi-
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There is not really enough information provided for any of these plans to make a 100% informed decision. As the parent of two young children (6 & 2) and living
within a 1/2 mile of Arcadia Elementary, I'd like to know the justification for closing it, especially given that all 4 options provided include it closing. Why do you
want to close one of the better performing elementary schools in the city of Tuscaloosa? Will the school district lines be redrawn with these changes? What is the
time frame for implementation? If Arcadia closes & the districts remain as currently drawn I don't want my children to have to travel south of 20/59 for school
each day when Alberta Elementary is within walking distance of our home. If a new elementary school is built for our children, where will it be? I realize long term
planning important, but what about the short term for children and their parents in the school system now? Given that the growth projections do not dramatically
increase for the timeline provided, it would seem there is ample time to study this and explain to the community shareholders what and why the proposed changes are necessary.
There needs to be a new construction middle school for north of the river middle schoolers in all the plans!
There needs to be a new middle school in district 3 (35406). We have the oldest middle school in the city...and it's overcrowded...and it's connected to an elemen-
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crous. The city donated land for a new middle school in District 3 and a tax has raised the money for that school already. Option A is the only option that makes
sense for the middle schools.
The speaker talked too much. We don't need you to explain handouts. We can read. You wasted my time and brain energy. The only positive is the increase in
Pre-K seats. Elementary Schools should remain in small numbers on separate campus. Still not enough diversity. Central would still be 99% black. No one ever
came to our table to questions and answers. Waste of tax dollars money.
The TMS facility should not be considered for continued use by the system under any scenario. If we do not go with the two high school option, we should add the
"build a new middle school" option from A into either the B or C scenario. The reasons to pursue that option far outweigh the reasons to stay on the TMS site.
Ultimately, I believe the options should be combined an streamlined into TWO scenarios that are presented to the community again: 1) a revised and finalized
version of what is now option D and 2) an option that combines elements of either C or D with building a new middle school north of the river that adds BOTH Alberta and UPE as feeder elementary schools. With a proper remodel of NHS (increasing capacity at least slightly) and a realignment of the feeder pattern, surely
we can figure out how to reduce enrollment and minimize the impact to demographic/SES balances at the same time.
There are components of A and B that have appeal. I think they boundary (current) is causing the over attendance problems. The capacity is an issue because students are being sent to NHS from areas that are much closer to current high schools. Consolidating to 2 high schools is costly. Very costly to repurpose TMS as a
middle school for athletics.
There is much merit to plan D, but I don't think the community can stomach the cost. A move to bigger middle and elementary schools brings more resources and
greater flexibility. There must be a commitment to maintaining the features that exist at the current smaller schools - things like teaching teams at the middle
schools and common planning times. The existing structure at the magnet school building would need to be completely redone, since the design inhibits collaboration and keeps teachers in isolation. I worry that plan D is the only one that gets the district closer to balanced diversity at the high schools.
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tary...and there is plenty of land to build it...and the community would probably support a property tax increase for it. I believe that C (if you include a new middle
in district 3. Moving the middle school to TMS is not a good option when there are schools and land closer) is the best option for my children and for all kids. Mr.
Tracy made a comment, that if a certain option is chosen, that Northridge would lose the diversity it desires so much. Making it sound like we crave and desire
diversity. I have spent a lot of time in the military and can vouch that not everyone puts a massive emphasis on diversity; however, certainly here, in Tuscaloosa, I
have seen people that put so much emphasis on creating diversity. If you treat everyone the same, in my mind, then you don't even consider things like that, because you are treating them the same. How is it treating someone the same by bussing them 30 minutes away when there is a school closer than that? I live in
district 3. Verner has over 25% diversity, Rock Quarry Elementary is over 10%. That is a direct representation, I feel, of my exact neighborhood. I do not think we
should force additional diversity on families at the cost of forcing a child to ride a bus for longer than 15 minutes, and up to 45 minutes (which is what I hear is happening in the City). What if that child is special needs? I would not allow my child to ride a bus for 45 minutes to give a school the "diversity it so desires", if there
was a school right by my house. It is not a race issue. My children play with children of other races, all the time, in our neighborhood. The special needs school in
a single location does not sit well with me at all. Special needs children need to be in the school with their typical peers and siblings. 100%. If there are issues,
then there needs to be a portion of the school for special needs children, not isolated with children with special needs at another location. Full disclosure, I have a
child with Down Syndrome. Great meeting on Thursday morning. Thank you for not making it a mass Q&A. Thank you for helping our City.
There needs to be a new middle school north of the river. Northridge is overcrowded so send students to the schools they are closest to!
There should be one separate facility specifically for IB. The system can make new high schools that are bigger and can change some high schools to middle schools
and some middle schools into elementary schools. But there won't be a point of all of this if it is not guaranteed that all of the schools will be integrated.
These concepts do not provide for growth for the Magnet Schools. These schools are flourishing and are in high demand. I request that the magnet programs grow
one additional class per grade. Please add 2-3 kindergarten classrooms to Magnet. There is high demand for this and there must be a fair way to test the students,
especially with PreK coming to the system. 9-10 IB is imperative- please bring this online for 2015-16; no need to wait for other changes/construction/
renovations. 9-10 could happen at TMSM in *2015-16* The students, school and principal are READY NOW. 9-10 can then move to Central (or wherever) later. For
every year that we wait, we lose 60+ future IB 11-12th graders. The programs that are successful at Magnet should be shared with the rest of the system. Full year
art, full year music, and foreign language for ALL GRADES. It is an embarrassment that Magnet elementary students get Spanish 2x week while no other students in
even MIDDLE school receive foreign language instruction. Druid City Garden project is an amazing resource. Their investment in our schools has been substantial.
PLEASE provide funding for the gardens to be moved as necessary- or to replace new gardens (paid for by TCS) at the new facilities if the school program previously
had a garden. DCGP should not lose their investment in our schools because of these changes. Please plan to pay for the required garden moves. We are lucky to
have them as a community partner. Please allow downtown to remain in the choice (RQ, NHS) choice district.
These plans are ridiculous. We just converted all the elementary schools to K-8 ... Why are we going back to change it? A complete waste of money and time.
These proposals are appalling. The magnet elementary and middle schools are the best schools in the system, and you want to close them. I gave every option
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This survey's psychometric properties are not valid. Please use an instrument that has good reliability and validity.
To cut out cost and the diversity issues within the city there needs to only be two high schools. I don't know why they built 2 additional high schools in the first
place.
Too many changes.
Tuscaloosa Magnet and Oakdale already have a project based learning lab, the garden. Closing these schools would equate to an astronomical cost for the Druid
City Garden Project to move their gardens and reestablish the PBLL.
Tuscaloosa Magnet Elementary needs to be K - 12 grade IB Program.
Tuscaloosa Magnet School is the only Blue Ribbon School in the system and the 8th ranked school in the state. This is a prestigious honor, one that should be celebrated, held as an example, exploited. Let’s not bury it within another school and make it a program. It needs to stay a school that stands alone. It works!! o Rather than diluting the Magnet School, apply some of the principles of the IB program to all schools. Use the best practices – be smart! Other schools won’t feel like
they are being shortchanged this way. o Keep in mind that states bordering AL have the following Blue Ribbon Schools: GA -12, TN -6, FL- 9, MS – 2. To keep AL
competitive when recruiting businesses, coaches, professors, etc., I believe that having schools of this caliber are absolutely necessary when touting local re-
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the lowest possible rating, and I resent that the subsequent questions required ranking any one of these moronic schemes above any other. None deserves any
praise. I attended Tuscaloosa's relentlessly mediocre public schools in the 1970s. Given the system's long history of killing off every good program they ever had - UA-connected Verner, Central Magnet, University Place Montessori, American Studies at Central High -- I was deeply skeptical of the survivability of the new magnet schools when they opened six years ago. After meeting the principals and talking to school board officials, though, I was convinced to send my children there.
While not perfect, both the elementary and middle programs have been great, especially in the context of Tuscaloosa's otherwise lackluster school system. But,
true to form, success can't be tolerated for long here. I know there will be floods of pablum about excellence -- World-Class! Best Schools Anywhere! -- and I
know it'll all be a lie. There will continue to be bright spots, where individual teachers and principals manage to pump enough oxygen into individual classrooms to
fire neurons in a handful of young brains. But that's not good enough. In fact, it's pathetic. I am deeply grateful that my children will soon be out of the system. I
only hope that they manage to graduate before any of these misbegotten scenarios is put in place. I am ashamed of my community.
Think it is better to have more middle schools for sports teams, band, academic clubs.
This is absurd. It will create more chaos. The middle schools need to be smaller. Our kids do not need to be moving around to a different school, because it will
cause more instability in their routine and emotional growth. We need more IB programs in more schools, not only in the Magnet. Rock Quarry Middle should not
relocate anywhere else. The number of students should not be increased, because the quality of instruction will decrease.
This study has numerous flaws and can only be successful if done in conjunction with program review and change. Additionally, other community agencies, local
governments and higher education entities should be at the table. We need to review our student learning needs, our community employment needs, and get
outside of our silos. This is the cart before the horse.
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sources. o If you need more students in the school to “fit” a building, there are many changes you can make: • Expand the program. Add 9 and 10, and make the
campus house grades 1-12 (this would be an excellent choice). • Alternatively, keep it 1-8 and expand the number of classes per grade. For instance, it’s my understanding that we had 891 applications for approximately 80 spots. The demand is there; change the supply to come closer to meeting the demand. This not only
satisfies more “customers” (i.e., parents) it will relieve some pressure on the other schools and will likely draw more students back from private schools. • The
current building they are in or Central HS building is great facility option for this plan. o One thing that makes the magnet school work is the fact that we have
grades 1-8 on the same campus. We share resources, ideas, and collaborate- exactly the kind of program you are trying to design by combining other schools within the system. I strongly urge you to keep the school as 1 school and all grades together. • My children currently attend TMSE. As it is set up now, they would stay
on the same campus through 8th grade. After that, they would go to a feeder school for 9th and 10th and then to Central HS for 11th and 12th to stay in the program. This kind of disruption – mainstreaming them after 8 years and then going back to IB on a new campus (which is actually a program within a school) is not
ideal for a high school child (and speaks to the low number of HS students enrolled in the IB program). This is a critical time in an adolescent’s life, when emotions,
hormones, peer pressure and other factors greatly influence all children. Moving a child three times within 7 years, I would guess, is against most data collected on
what creates a stable adolescent. The solution to minimizing this disruption is to keep all IB students together from grade 1-12. This allows for continuity, mentoring, and a comfort level that frees the children to focus more on academics rather than peer pressure and other external factors. • The Magnet School is a recruiting tool for businesses, the University, and raises the quality of life in Tuscaloosa including property values. It gives an option to everyone, regardless of
whether they choose to take advantage of it. When you live in a state like Alabama that is consistently at or near the bottom of most educational rankings, why
would you want to change it? • Rather than dumbing down the magnet school to make the “resources” equal among schools, raise the resources to the other
schools. And, keep in mind, all Tuscaloosa families have an opportunity to apply to the magnet school, so the argument that I often hear “less than 5% of our students attend this school, why are so many resources being used here” just doesn’t hold water. With 891 applications, there is a great interest in this school, and
indicates that we are doing something right. • The idea of combining two different schools into one building but keeping them separate schools is absurd. If the
goal were to share resources, why would you have two different administrations operate in one building? Your administrative costs are too high (although I understand not doubled – you will need extra administrators to handle a larger school) and you will have resource teachers who will have two bosses, which is never a
good idea, as well as create competition within a school. The logic does not support this idea, this is an emotional solution, and I suspect one that appeases current
teachers/administrators. • Please give students in need of special services, whether it be special education, counseling, alternative education, or additional support
the resources they need to be successful at school. To some, this is their only safe place, and we are currently understaffed in this area. Please consult with local
teachers who handle these types of students to assess their needs. Listen to them. • Interest is high in the Magnet School/IB education. Just doing some quick
math, with 10 current elementary schools with kindergarten, I am guessing there are about 1,000 K students (give or take) in the system (assuming 5 classes at
each school with approximately 20 kids each). I understand that 891 applications were received for admission to TMSE next year, which nears a rate of 90% (again,
even with an error factor of +/- 5%, this is a tremendous number). Plan now for growth. There is no significant growth plan in plans A, B, C, or D for TMS/IB pro-
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Two schools as one facility with shares areas/personell diminishes parent support, building pride, and feeling of ownership. We have had two in one (Central ES/
Magnet) disaster. Strongly oppose non-use of Tuscaloosa Magnet building for program proximity to UA, partnerships, etc.
Two schools with similar socio-economic makeup (option D) would facilitate a more balanced distribution of resources and equal access to specialty services for all
students, compared to the three-tiered system with one rich school and one poor school represented by concepts A, B, and C.
University Place Elementary should feed into Westlawn and Central. Don't let politics play a role even though it will I guess.
Very complex presentation. Hard to understand benefits/disadvantages of some proposed changes. Not in favor of new high schools. More in favor of some stability in the system for a change. Would like to state support for having gardens in each elementary school regardless of where they are located. Evidence has
proven value of hands-on learning in gardens in many areas such as science, nutrition, math.... Would like for each student to have an opportunity for the kinds of
experiences that are currently available to students at Elementary Magnet, University Place, and a few others.
Very poorly designed survey! Questions 5 and 6 are designed to force you to choose an answer even if you don't like any of the choices. You cannot move forward
to answer question 7 without providing answering questions 5 & 6. I prefer not to combine multiple middle schools into larger middle schools. Populations at the
MS level should remain well below HS student populations. Also, if the overall student population is not increasing then why build new schools. Let's work with
the facilities we've got and renovate them. Here's a chance for us as a community to make wise use of public funds.
We are both University Faculty. I have terminal degrees in both Mathematics and in Education with over 20 years of experience in the education industry. All of
these plans that are being proposed focus solely on the usage of facilities and what may seem politically correct or motivated. Just because you build it, does not
mean they will come. Unfortunately, if there is not some serious talk about how the IB program will remain not just intact, but under one roof, and in close proximity to UA, this community will stand to lose a lot. We have two children and are zoned for Rock Quarry. We would love for the kids to have the opportunity to
someday be in the IB program. However, there is no chance in hell that we are sending them to Central if they do qualify when they are older. It is just plain unsafe, and may be the reason that program is not doing as it was planned. Just recently, I read that the Magnet Elementary was awarded with the coveted National
Blue Ribbon status. Having taught at a nationally recognized district and high school years ago in California, I can they that this is damn impressive for a town like
ours, and can be contagious to the other schools around it (like Rock Quarry) as they compete to become recognized themselves. However, by disrupting the current setting of that school and possibly housing under the roof of another in a different location, it could all end. I know this from experience to this very thing happening in the Fullerton School District years ago. IB programs need to be treated as the crown jewel of any school district. After talking with a facilities and planning person here at UA we crunched some numbers and believe that Option D to be the best with revision. Here is what I offer up: keep Option D as it stands, but
do not close down the current Magnet Elementary/Middle location. Make that the IB 1st-12th school which will be the best in the State of Alabama at some point!
This will reduce the stress on both new high schools and allow for students to enter into that program at the 1st, 6th, and 9th grade levels. It will also allow for the
University to keep the ties it has developed intact with additional room for other activities such as lab time, student teaching, etc. Then the City of Tuscaloosa will
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have in effect a complete school that is nationally recognized, centrally located, culturally diverse, strong ties to the University, and an answer to the growing competition with the private schools in our town that are all White/Upper class only! As a parent and educator, I would love my children to have this opportunity.
Many parents such as myself would love the opportunity for our kids to be a part of the Magnet School if there was the room, but we do understand that it is limited to just the brightest and the best in each of the elementary feeders. With my proposal it is possible that children like mine could enter into the school in 6th
or 9th grades. My children may never step foot in the Magnet School halls, but I know from experience that the idea of keeping them all together and centrally
located in a "Safe" part of town is both advantageous for them and the School District. Let me close by saying that I have been at UA for nearly a decade and have
talked with many of my peers about this current situation. We all feel the same way and frustrated with the politics that underlies this issue. Many bright researchers and teachers have turned down positions at this University due to the lack of decent education for their children. Many have mentioned that they are
frustrated with the IB program that is currently offered for the 9-12 grades and do wish that it was in a safer part of town.
We do not to expend funds for new schools. This appears as an attempt to allow the higher performing students to be "mixed in" low performing schools simply to
raise performance levels of failing schools. This is a "dilution scheme" at its best. Students in their districts need to be pushed to perform or out right fail. Lowering
our standards just to pass "unqualified" students is a "excuse" just like the old "No child left behind" program. When are we going quit giving away grades, make
kids "LEARN" and stop "giving a free pass ? " Wes Hamby 205-792-0959
We do not want to see the Magnet School program dismantled. The fact that the Elementary School received the Blue Ribbon this year is testament to the good
things that the program is doing for its students. A lot of time, money, and dedication has gone into cultivating the Magnet School Elementary and Middle and it
would be a shame to not see what it could become. Plus it would be a disservice to the students that have worked so hard to have a chance to participate in the
project based program.
We had to adjust a few years ago that caused a great inconvience. We've adjusted. Leave everything as it is. New schools, find new kids.
We have essentially laid down $12K worth of infrastructure at each school and a move of all of that would cost a few thousand dollars per school in new compost,
hiring vans/equipment, laying down new irrigation, etc. It seems absurd that the school or DCGP would be responsible for taking care of such a moving cost, given
that this decision is out of our control.
We love the magnet school for our daughter. It has been a fabulous experience. I would be very uncomfortable sending my 6th grader to a high school location
that served a large number of 9-12. I love the idea of a k-12 magnet/IB all housed together.
We need cost comparisons. I do not think the IB program should be a priority. I think it is important to reduce crowding in the schools. I think proximity to schools
is important to reduce crowding in the schools. I think proximity to schools is important for transportation. I think sports considerations should be minimal.
We need Oak Hill for the best interest of the students who are disabled. Keep it open. Reopen it. Those facilities make a big difference to children with special
needs. Or put swimming pools and other facilities in each facility where disabled students are placed. Every school needs full time art, music, band, spanish, german, and french teachers (midlde and above). Make one big high school.
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We need to build a new RQMS and sell the very valuable property that the Magnet school sits on.
We need to know boundary lines before we can really make these important decisions. As a parent we have been very happy with our son's education. We want
to be able to continue.
We're concerned about the capacity of Northridge.
What about over crowding. How would the school function with some many children with sports, bus routes, how would lunch run with so many to feed in a
short amount of time. Why do you need pre k centers when you will have pre k in every school. And parents do not wont to have to run all over town to pick there
children up from three different schools.
What are the "real" goals? 1)Integrate all schools with more consistent Black to White ratio? Note: The system is 75% Black 25% White now . All schools with the
exception of maybe 2 are majority black now. You do realize that, right? Make every school have same ratio as system ratio. Who can complain then? 2) Improve
test scores -APY? 3) Save money? 4) Attract more industry/jobs to Tuscaloosa? We've lost 100% of most recent significant opportunities and the poor school system was a major determining factor. Suggestion: Cut busing- it's a huge financial drain- assign kids to schools in the new boundary lines or to nearest school
where they live, period.
What I find so appealing about Concept D is that it finally resolves a longstanding problem with the high schools being racially and socioeconomically segregated by
creating two new HS with zoning boundaries that avoid these problems. I also like Concept D's basic plan for reforming the middle school programs, giving each
middle school access to the resources required for full science labs, etc. That said, I think two things need to be considered as possible modifications to Concept D.
First, Woodland Forrest Elementary is a place with deep history and real significance to the community. There are also irreplaceable resources there, such as the
outdoor classroom that made it a Discovering Alabama Model School. I believe it should be renovated/updated, but not closed/consolidated. Second, concept D
creates an IB continuity problem - it is not possible to put grades 6-8 in one facility, and 9-12 in another, because 9-10 are considered "Middle Years" by IB and so
have to be in the same school as 6-8... unless we want to go to the considerable expense and effort of getting two "Middle Years" programs certified, which makes
no sense. I would recommend Concept D, but with two revisions: Woodland Forrest is renovated, not closed/consolidated; and, IB 6-12 are all put together in a
single school, even if that means that IB 6-8 are unique in terms of being the only middle school kids consolidated with one of the new new high schools.
What is the plan for Oakhill? The Magnet School? What are you going to do with the surplus property? Why are you even doing this? How is building new facilities going to improve the education of my children when the teachers are unable to use proper grammar? How much is this consultant firm being paid? Where
did that money come from? Over the past 10 years, the TCS built 2 new high schools that were supposed to be strategically poised for growth. I heard that come
from Mayor Maddox's mouth during a Projects Committee Meeting, so how has that worked? In the same 10 years other schools have been renovated/
remodeled, not to mention University Place and Alberta were reconstructed after the 2011 tornado. What consideration was given to this past activity? This entire process is a waste of time and tax payer money. You simply want to build buildings for the sake of building buildings (spend money). Oh by the way, the real
ranking for all plans should be 0 and I do not prefer any one over the other. Throw this garbage in the trash where it belongs and stop wasting my tax dollars. A K-
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Individual (Paper & Web) Comments
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12 education system that focuses on the core components of education, reading, writing and mathematics, book-ended with factually correct history from ancient
times to the present, economics and science is what produces good, well rounded students (and a portion will subsequently become good teachers), not pretty
buildings.
What outcome data is used in developing this strategy for the long term success of the STUDENTS? This is a terrible plan for student success but a wonderful plan
for destroying our public schools and property values.
Whatever ends up happening you have GOT to get RQMS out of RQES. The traffic is a disaster and elementary kids and middle school kids should not be housed in
the same building.
When combining the elementary schools they should have 1 admin not 2 separate admins.
When considering a school within a school concept, please make sure that the auditorium is separate from the gymnasium. If two schools are sharing facilities and
one school may have a performing arts, the other school would have to lose instructional time because of lack of space. You also need to consider what happens if
certain schools have extended planning. Many schools choose to use specialists to provide coverage while teachers are collaboratively planning. Both schools
(under the same roof) have to be like minded so that the specialists aren't stretched too thin. I have taught at a school within a school model for 7 years in my previous district. As the schools enroll larger numbers of students, the students lose the sense of community that is provided to the small neighborhood schools. This
is one of the reasons why we moved back to Tuscaloosa. I am sad to see that the school within a school concept is a part of every proposed plan. I know Mr. Richter says that this is being done all across the country. He fails to discuss that several districts that used the school within a school models are now taking those
models out of their facilities plan. I hope the board and the stakeholders will do a good job of investigating why these districts moved away from the school within
a school model.
When I first saw the options prior to the meeting and saw there were options moving RQMS students to an old building, I was disappointed that this option would
even be presented. The school board had land donated to them and has the money from tax revenue sitting in an account. RQMS has portables and what data
you have that the building is under-capacity is flawed, at best, if not misrepresented in actuality. A new, separate, dedicated COMMUNITY middle school north of
the river for the RQ/Verner schools should be built, as it has been promised for years. Also, the very idea that this city would deem it fiscally responsible to build
two new high school less than 15 years after building three new high schools (and athletic facilities) is preposterous.
When merging two elementary schools into one building, I think it is important that they function as one school rather than two separate schools.
When you merge buildings with the plan of keeping all admin. personell, we must consider the implications of split or shared leadership. Maybe 1 principal handles admin responsibilities and the other is the instructional leader. Also, if you combine schools to make SVE a large elementary school it should be a primary (K2) school on 1 side and an intermediate school (3-5) on the other side. But then it is still one school/family. I like the 2 HS model.
Where are the details about Edgar week happen to Northridge high in option a?
Why are demographics an issue? Why would lunch being provided be more difficult at a school that has more free and reduced lunch students?
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Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Individual (Paper & Web) Comments
Will there be overcrowding? What will the bus routes be like? What is the purpose of a Pre-K center if you have Pre-K in all the schools?
Will zone lines be adjusted from how they stand currently? If they will be adjusted that may change my preference concerning the three conepts dramatically.
What is the construction cost associated with each concept? What are the personnel costs associated with each concept? Why are we discussing having two
schools, with seperate administrations and support staff, in the same building? Wouldn't it make more sense to treat them as one school and use the personnel
savings to strengthen curriculum and delivery of instruction? The current TMS buildong is a horrible design in a valuable commercial area. Why are we utilizing it
in concepts B and C? Wouldn't it make more sense to sell that property, thereby transitioning it into a commercial development that would generate both ad valorem and sales taxes that could be used to support the City schools and build a new magnet school on the mental health property next to Northridge? That would
eliminate a poorly designed facility, put the new middle school adjacent to the high school it feeds into (allowing them to share athletic facilities, auditorium, etc,),
and generate new tax revenue. The mental health property is available for a limited time at no cost to the system and the funds from the sale of the TMS property
could be used toward the construction of the new school. Continuing to use the TMS facility and relinquishing a free piece of property in an area currently experiencing overcrowding and tremendous growth seems shortsighted, and frankly, not very smart.
With such a small projection in student population over the next several years, I do hope we, and you, get it right this time; however, I want to share that I attended a very small public school where every student had equal opportunity to participate in all activities. My children attended the years that ALL Tuscaloosa city children attended the SAME school. They benefited from the diversity HOWEVER, I think their quality of education and personal development were HINDERED by being in the "masses". A HUGE part of becoming a successful adult is from the self confidence a student gains from developing a core of friends, being "known" by
teachers over a period of time (not just from one class); and from the opportunities to participate in service projects, school activities, and organizations. A MEGA
school vs a smaller school has fewer leadership opportunities and fewer opportunities to contribute because there are SO many students. Parents are going to continue to move to the school zone they feel is best for their child and any way you look at it, the 06 zip code is THAT zone. So growth will continue to pack students
there NO MATTER HOW EXCELLENT the schools are in other areas of the City. Parents want to be in areas where "other parents are similar to them in socioeconomic standing". I do not live in that zone but listening to the young parents at my table at the presentation, it was easy to discern from them that my assessment
is correct. They could not tell me what it would take for them to move from the Northridge zone to a school in another part of town. The City School System is
making a valiant effort through this process to improve ALL schools in the City and I SINCERELY appreciate that. Now, how is the above related to the concepts
presented? As you stated in the meetings no matter what, there will be many unhappy with every option. I think you need to do what it takes to balance the diversity no matter what, to reduce the excess square footage the System has now, and to change school leadership when it becomes obvious that it's needed. I do
think progress had been made. My last point is related to the re-zoning to support the concept chosen. Please be careful to NOT ruin one school by how re-zoning
is done. Years ago, the BOARD dramatically changed Northington Elementary by the re-zoning (resulting in VERY few families being willing to move into that zone,
despite the fact the location has some nice family friendly neighborhoods and located in great proximity to everything. It is in a part of the City that you want to
remain well kept by families. This is a huge task and I do hope for an excellent outcome.
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Would like Concept B & C to include a new middle school built for Rock Quary and Verner and Alberta (feeder schools for Northridge) built north of the river.
Would like money attached. STARS neds to be separate.
Would like to see a more creative option for TMSE and TMSM that would allow the school to stay together with the addition of 9th and 10th grade to complete the
middle years program.
Would the districts change? If so what would the new boundaries be for each concept?
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Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Group Comments
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1 Mega High School, 2 Campuses. 3 Middle Schools at current high schools. Move elementary schools to middle schools. Combine - Rock quarry, Southview, University Place, TMS at Tuscaloosa MS. Combine - Central and Oakdale at Westlawn. Combine - Northington, Skyland, arcadia at Southview.
1. One mega HS so all students could be treated equally for resources that are funded. 2. Move University Place Middle / Elementary Schools to the Central High
Plan.
1. Our group thinks the consistency of the IB program is very important. Maybe consider it housing 1-12. 2. We like that the plans call for less schools so there are
more resources provided in each. 3. We want to ensure the proper capacity at the HS for whatever plan comes about. We like B and C as long as the district lines
allow 3 HS to be evenly distributed with student populations. Equitable resources. 4. We propose combining A & B to include sell TMS to help pay for N ELO
RQMS. 5. D: Not enough info to figure out. We like 2 HS. Wish we knew where HS would go.
1. Several concepts have very large MS. 2. Concern over sending 6-8 graders to Central HS. 3. Some elementary school concepts seemed too large. 4. Like the
diversity of 2 HS's but concerned about sports/club involvement.
1. We like Concept D, but feel the facilities need to be located centrally within each region to limit HS student driving. 2. University Place capacity seems to be
over estimated. It does not have the space for the proposals. 3. Concerned over elementary and middle school together. 4. Students shouldn't be bused all over
the district to meet the needs of the child. All needs met at home school. 5. 2 SPED teachers at Oakdale and Central, if you merge into Westlawn, these 4 will not
be enough and case load will be overwhelming. 6. Keep magnet school together. Create 1-12 IB only at one school. Grow together. 7. How will school within
school operate? Why not make these consolidated schools 1 school and not create a diverse environment?
1. Wish all schools had the opportunity to participate in IB program (not all group agrees). We like B and C because 6-12 stays together and better distribution of
population to prevent overcrowding. 3. We are concerned about cost (so not D necessarily). 4. Most not as concerned about sports.
A- Overcapacity at Northridge. B- All HS are under capacity. 2 middles that feed into HS except CHS are not equal. C- Puts Bryant way over capacity. Why is Central under capacity? B/c it is IB? D- Schools too big.
Add MYP IB (grades 6-8) at TCTA to have continuity at program level (Concept D). Separate K/1-12 IB facility (Concept D). Keep choice in downtown zone. Expand
IB, arts, STEAM programs/schools.
Administrative improvements need to enforce policies and code of conduct rules regarding behavioral issues. We are too lax and inconsistent with following rules
from school to school. Need to assure staffing in schools to cover and increased number of kids/school and special needs. Sixth graders should not be in school
with 12th graders.
After discussion, we do not feel that we have had enough time to digest the information. No concept was accepted or considered adequate. We feel there has
been too much change already.
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Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Group Comments
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Am not sure why were are doing this. Do not like the concept of so many kids (middle) at a high school facility. Make it convenient for people to get their kids to
school. I disagree with the possibility of having to travel farther from home. I purchased my home based on the proximity to the 3 schools in my district. Why do
we have a Tuscaloosa City and County District? If we want efficiency, why not consider one administration for both?
Concept B: Protect the magnet program - do not house them with high school students. Associate Pre-K with ES, not mega centers. Concept D: Specialty HS and
Central (IB, Pre-K. Arts, STEM)
Concept D poor choice because creates 2 mega HS and logistical bus issues. Concept B - best choice of concepts because it has 3 HS, leaves room for growth, and
gets all schools closer to capacity.
Concepts B & C - Sell the Magnet School property and use proceeds to build new middle school next to Northridge. IB program either needs to be 1-12 or 6-12. No
6-8 model. Could not reach consensus on Concept B & D. Divided on opinion of 2 HS concept. Would like to see more options with a 2 HS concept.
Concern about single campus with 2 schools. Will the 2 schools share art/music/library tech? Concern about having need for IB Coordination if IB is split on 1-5, 612. Might have different requirements for 6-10 and 11-12. Would recommend IB 1-12 with elementary, middle and high under one umbrella at same place.
Concerns: Concept D - The 2 high school idea is appealing however we are concerned about location and that they are centrally located. All concepts - We have
concerns about the number of students on each campus. As well as the pairing of successful schools with schools not meeting standards. IB Program - Putting the
IB 6-8 graders at Central among HS students is major concern. Plans for IB school at all levels seems to be an after thought, and not supportive of all it has accomplished. Our group would like to see IB program housed all under one roof (ES, MS, 9-12).
Districts new schools have been configured as K-8 schools but all concepts have been presented as K-5, middle and high schools. The concepts do not support best
outcomes for students in 6th-8th graders. Focus seems to be on construction and not on educating students.
Focus construction dollars on replacement of outdated facilities rather than achieving an ideal geographical location.
Group did not reach any consensus. They like the idea of a new middle school at RQ. Think the current magnet IB program should stay in current location. Still like
the idea of one large high school.
I think it makes no sense to have Southview/Skyland zoned for Northridge. I don't trust any of this concept. Building new schools does not solve our school problems.
IB program should be K-12 in one location. Special arts curriculum is being planned for Alberta Performing Arts Middle School students after 8th grade? Concept D
- opposing views. Some like 2 HS, some don't. IB MYP is split between two schools. That is not optimal. They like two HS because it will bring more diversity and
be closer to the one city school concept that so many people who grew up in Tuscaloosa remember very fondly. With larger HS will need larger gyms and athletic
facilities.
IB program to be located in one facility (1-12). Will 2 high school be located such that diversity will increase? Same with middle school.
If every elementary school will have a Pre-K, what is the purpose of a Pre-K Center? D - least objection but still problematic. Concern about 6th graders with differ-
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Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Group Comments
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ent high school. Unrealistic to expect us to be able to evaluate so many moving parts.
In my opinion, Concept D given the diversity the city needs. However, I do not believe it is financially feasible. What about 3 HS's centrally located?
Keep STARS separate. Don't spend out back money on buildings. Keep bus riding/waiting time to a minimum.
None of them.
Not enough facts to make these major decisions. Don't charge schools north/south, go east/west. One high school. Money for schools - why not use it for teachers. People will move if you redraw the lines. Plan E - Community elementary - 1 HS 9-10, 1 HS 11-12, IND grade level schools (6-8). Building opens the door for
too much animosity. Do not support this idea.
Note: This ranking is based on the current boundaries. Concern about re-drawing of boundaries where is leads to certain demographics leaving the system. Concept D - we like HS, but MS needs work. Q5: 1st choice was a majority, but not consensus. Consensus on 4th choice. What do you mean by "diversity".
One high school should be on the table. We want the city and county school buildings to work together for the communities they are in. Bryant High should be
county
Our group does not feel comfortable making an informed decision regarding the choices. The unanswered question is how will re-working the facilities and distribution help our children learn and how does this assist parents to help our children and how can this be done equitably throughout the city.
Plan E - 4 high schools. Add a small high school.
Pros: address NHS feeder/capacity issues. IE - levels out attendance - keeps children from traveling long distance to high school. Cons: concerns about TMS as
viable middle school from MS up - older building. No athletic facilities. Concept A: does not address current attendance/boundary capacity issues at Northridge.
Does not plan for growth in currently growing areas.
Providing more time and information about program offerings at the two schools would separate from the Concept of C. e.g. Alberta/IB/STEM/Athletics
Put streets on school boundaries. Don't like 6-12 at high school even if it's IB kids.
Q1 - move equitable pattern to go to high school. Concept A - seemed to be rushed. Although it provided a new middle school, it over crowded the high school.
Very concerned about having 2 schools within a school. Rezoning lines - more honest representation of school lines.
We believe University Place and Westlawn MS should come together. Also, Southview and Woodland Forest come together. One high school instead of 2.
We do not like what D does with IB. IB should have its own facility, K-12. But otherwise we like D. Central High School or present building would be good for IB K12. With combined schools (Ex. Arcadia/Northington/Skyland) we think there should be one administration rather than 2 schools under one roof.
We don't like the idea of separate schools in the same building. One participant talked about how badly that worked after the tornado when schools had to combine. We suggest one dedicated IB school K-12. Concerned about combining Southview Middle and Eastwood Middle due to the increase in the number of students. We thought that was why Southview Middle opened because EMS was overcrowded.
We expressed a great amount of concern with elementary schools at 900-1000 student. A, B, C lack diversity in Central HS feeder pattern. Feeder pattern for Cen-
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Q7: Please provide any additional comments you may have regarding the concepts presented.
Group Comments
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tral does not change in A, B, or C. University Place has challenges being split by UA zone that have never need solved with STEAM program. Need to keep up in
NHS feeder.
We like Concept C, but we want a new middle school north of river to maintain neighborhood schools. We think the property The Tuscaloosa Magnet School is on
should be sold ( to U of A?). We think University Place should feed into Central High School to address overcapacity at Bryant HS in this scenario. University Place is
closer to Central HS. We are in favor of maintaining neighborhood schools. We think athletic/arts facilities should be available at all middle school campuses, as
well as at high schools.
We need more information about the location of SPED services. Concerns about cost of Plan D. Will we split to 2 high schools based on elementary zones or middle school zones.
We really liked Concept A except worried about capacity at Northridge, would like to see Southview to Bryant and Alberta to Northridge. Concept B was the most
preferred, but there are concerns about the size of the Northridge feeder middle school Concept C makes Bryant too big and the Bryant elementary schools too
large. Concept D was the favorite choice by the Bryant High representatives at our table. The IB representative did not like having 9-12 IB at TCTA. The table did
not like the idea of 2 mega high schools. Prefer community schools.
We would like to know more about the plans for the special education program and how the boundary lines would be re-drawn for each concept.
What will happen to the STEAM program? Where will the kids attend high school?
Why in Plan B & C would you relocate kids from a school they attend and send them to another school but move other kids into the magnet? Magnet school needs
to be 1-12 in one facility or the program will fail. Also, a school within a school doesn't work well. Magnet and Alberta struggled during this process - teachers,
kids, administration - all involved. Please consider moving the IB program 1-12 into Central HS. Or add on to Magnet School to accommodate 9-12. As the concepts stand these are our thoughts. Concept A would be a good option if some of the load was taken off of Northridge (Southview moved to Bryant). Several of us
think that selling Magnet school property and building new RQMS would be a good option but load does need to be taken off of Northridge. If this isn't possible,
we like B or C.
Why not have University place feed Central? This will help the Northridge overcrowding and will benefit the traffic surplus.
Will magnet have equal facilities if they move to Central? Currently magnet enjoys kitchen, performing arts, etc. Is 6-12 grade too big of an age range to put into
one facility. Will IB at Central share cafeteria, gym, buses w/ Tuscaloosa Magnet Middle? Will parents/principals/teachers serve on the committee to draw up
blueprints for new/combined facilities? How will all of this be paid for? Concept A puts Northridge over capacity. What is the timeline and what will we do in the
meantime? Our group cannot rate the above because we need more information and there are a diversity of options.
Worried about zoning lines.
Would like to see UPES feed into WMS/CHS in Option C. Would like to see 1 MS for NWHS in Option D.
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Q8: Age
Q9: Education
Individual (Paper & Web)
Individual (Paper & Web)
9
1.4%
Current Student
12
1.8%
18-29
78
12.0%
Not a high school graduate
5
0.8%
30-39
203
31.3%
High school graduate / GED
23
3.5%
40-49
240
37.0%
Some college / trade school
64
9.9%
50-64
99
15.3%
College graduate
219
33.7%
65+
20
3.1%
Adv anced degree
326
50.2%
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Q10: Ethnicity
Q10: Ethnicity—Other
Individual (Paper & Web)
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412
65.2%
Black/African American (non-Hispanic)
182
28.8%
Hispanic or Latino
7
1.1%
Asian (non-Hispanic)
7
1.1%
3
0.5%
5
0.8%
16
2.5%
Pacific Islander / American Indian /
Alaskan Nativ e / Other (non-Hispanic)
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Other
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Two or more races (non-Hispanic)
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W hite (non-Hispanic)
Choose not to identify
does it matter
Dont want to disclose
have a black child
Human
my race shouldn't matter
Native American/British
Scottish-American
White and Hispanic
would my race make my comments and thoughts weigh more heavily or possibly not at all ??? it shouldn’t.
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Q11: Parent / Guardian Status
Individual (Paper & Web)
122
11.8%
Parent/guardian of a child less than 5
87
8.4%
Parent/guardian of a kindergarten student
81
7.8%
Parent/guardian of a 1st-3rd grade student
197
19.1%
Parent/guardian of a 4th-5th grade student
139
13.4%
Parent/guardian of a 6th-8th grade student
184
Parent/guardian of a 9th-12th grade student
131
7
17.8%
12.7%
0.7%
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Parent/guardian of a priv ate/parochial student
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Do not hav e children in the District
47
4.5%
Grandparent of a current student or graduate
26
2.5%
13
1.3%
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Current student
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Parent/guardian of a former student or graduate of the District
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Q12: How did you find out about the dialogue?
Individual (Paper & Web)
140
10.4%
Local newspaper
97
7.2%
Church bulletin
8
0.6%
Community flyer
28
2.1%
5
0.4%
Poster in community
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School newsletter
Personal contact
142
10.6%
Radio/TV
34
2.5%
Email
306
Telephone call
Text message
Other
22.8%
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Social networking site (ex. Facebook, Twitter)
264
19.6%
156
11.6%
137
10.2%
27
2.0%
attended meeting 4-16
Attended one of the meetings
AUTOMATED SCHOOL INFORMATION SYSTEM
Class
District website
Druid City Garden Project
Employee of a Tuscaloosa City School
Faculty meeting at an elementary school
I am a teacher in the system.
I am on the Steering Committee
I attended the steering committee meeting the week prior.
I HEARD ABOUT IT FROM A CLASSMATE
I work for TCS.
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Q12: How did you find out about the dialogue? - Other
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my grandaughter told me about it
MY WIFE
people have been talking about combining the elementary schools with the
middle schools.
school website
Teacher in the system
TEACHERS WERE TALKING ABOUT IT
TV, newspaper, school all over the okace.
Visited the district webpage for another reason.
WDNL
Word of mouth at work.
4/27/2015
DRAFT—Community Dialogue #2 Results
Q13: Are you a resident of the district?
Q14: If yes, how many years have you lived there?
Individual (Paper & Web)
Individual (Paper & Web)
570
88.6%
2-5
92
15.3%
No
73
11.4%
6-10
87
14.5%
11-15
99
16.5%
16-20
74
12.3%
More than 20
188
31.3%
Not applicable
61
10.1%
AF
T
Yes
Individual (Paper & Web)
186
No
445
29.5%
70.5%
D
Yes
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Q15: Are you an employee or retiree of the district?
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Q16: With which schools are you affiliated? Select all that apply.
Individual (Paper & Web)
28
2.2%
Skyland Elementary School
22
1.7%
Arcadia Elementary School
51
4.0%
Southv iew Elementary School
34
2.7%
Central Elementary School
25
2.0%
Southv iew Middle School
29
2.3%
Central High School
36
2.8%
Tuscaloosa Career & Technology Academy
14
1.1%
Eastwood Middle School
54
4.2%
Tuscaloosa Magnet School - Elementary
107
8.3%
Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School
13
1.0%
Tuscaloosa Magnet School - Middle
71
5.5%
Northington Elementary School
21
1.6%
Univ ersity Place Elementary School
50
3.9%
Northridge High School
141
11.0%
Univ ersity Place Middle School
19
1.5%
Oak Hill School
11
0.9%
Verner Elementary School
114
8.9%
Oakdale Elementary School
31
2.4%
W estlawn Middle School
24
1.9%
Paul W . Bryant High School
56
4.4%
W oodland Forrest Elementary School
66
5.1%
Rock Quarry Elementary School
105
8.2%
Other
20
1.6%
Rock Quarry Middle School
140
10.9%
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Alberta Elementary School
Q16: With which schools are you affiliated? Select all that apply.—Other
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Board of Directors with Druid City Garden Project
Capitol School
Capitol School
Central Office
I have worked in all existing elem. sch. as reading teacher or gen. ed teacher
I have worked with all the schools.
I plan to have children soon, and am deeply committed to public education.
I work at Central High School and I have a child at Southview Middle School.
Maxwell Elem.
My child attends private school because our district is ranked so poor.
My children previously attended Verner Elementary and Rock Quarry Middle
NIA
NIG
NONK
D
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76
Previous schools, Northington, Holy Spirit, Westlawn, Eastwood, Central West
and East
The Rise School
This is my 23rd year of teaching at CHS
Tuscaloosa Academy
University of Alabama Student
4/27/2015