Only a few hundred families are considering a shift out. Few will get in, either, as many schools are at capacity.
By ELISABETH DYER
Published January 16, 2004
The message is clear. South Tampa area families like their neighborhood schools.
Of those eligible to choose among schools in Region 1, which includes South Tampa, just 215 students had turned in choice applications as of Jan. 8, the day before the deadline.
Countywide, another 500 applications came into the school district on Jan. 9, and a few hundred were received through the mail, said Beleria Floyd, Hillsborough's choice supervisor. As of early this week, the district had not finished processing them.
Eligible children include those entering kindergarten, sixth or ninth grade in the fall, along with students in every grade who live in the downtown inner-city area.
The district will enter all of the applications into a computerized lottery and mail results to families beginning Jan. 30.
Of the county's 180,000 students, 50,000 were eligible for school choice. As of Tuesday, 4,200 applications had been processed from students in the county's seven regions, Floyd said. Another 3,500 students, who have been bused to suburban schools, chose to keep going to their same schools and filled out "intent to return" forms in December.
Families happy with their assigned schools did not need to fill out a choice application to stay. Some parents acknowledged that they had already chosen a school when they decided to move into a particular neighborhood.
In Region 1, Plant High School received the most choice applications (34), followed by Wilson Middle School (33) and Coleman Middle (32) - all A-ranked schools.
First choices aren't guaranteed, Floyd said. District officials would meet with parents who did not get any of their choices.
Getting into popular South Tampa schools won't be easy. Several area schools are at capacity and, therefore, might not have room for choice students. School district officials told parents to apply anyway in case space becomes available.
"Just because they're at capacity now, doesn't mean they will be next year," said Floyd. Student graduations are sometimes greater than the incoming class. Other students opt to go to programs outside their neighborhood school.
Still, many parents worry that the choice program will overcrowd schools.
"What parents want to know is, are people going to be able to jam into our school?" said Eric Bergholm, principal at Plant, which is at capacity.
Students living within Plant's boundaries and those on already special assignment will not be affected, he said. However, those who applied to go to Plant through the choice program or special assignment probably won't get in unless enrollment goes down.
Enrollment could decline if current students choose magnet programs, such as the International Baccalaureate at Hillsborough or the arts at Blake, or attractors programs, such as aeronautic programs at Robinson.
The choice plan began when a federal appeals court declared Hillsborough free of segregation in 2001, ending 30 years of forced busing. The plan aims to keep schools racially diverse by offering students choice among schools.
To date, the district has spent $490,000 in marketing and computer software for the program.
The district will provide busing to students assigned to a school outside their neighborhood. Over the summer, officials will organize the routes, which most likely won't include transfer stations or mixing with magnet students, Floyd said.
Parents who missed the choice deadline but still want a school of choice can apply for special assignment. After the choice applications are processed, the district will accept special assignment applications based on space available and first-come, first-served.
That application period began Wednesday and goes through June 30. Applications are available and due at the school the student wishes to attend.
