Boundary Proposal Maps for 2008 Boundary Changes

The following maps detail boundary proposals for discussion at the November 14, 2006 public hearing at Golden Valley High School.  There will be a second public hearing at Bakersfield High School  on December 19, 2006.  Prior to that meeting, maps covering the proposals that will be discussed at that meeting will be posted at this site by Saturday, December 16th.

Hearings will start at 7:00 PM.  After the boundary proposals are presented, those in attendance will be invited to comment either verbally or in writing.  The transcript and all written comments will be given to the boundary committee.  Any mailed or e-mailed comments will be shared with the committee as well.  Comments may be sent to the Kern High School District, attention: Boundary Committee or to boundaryquestions@khsd.k12.ca.us .

These maps are in Adobe Acrobat format (.pdf).  Acrobat Reader is available as a free download from www.adobe.com.  Acrobat Reader includes a Zoom In function that allows a detailed view of a section of each map. This tool is available on the Acrobat Reader toolbar as shown below:

Four plans will be presented at the November 14, 2006 public hearing at Golden Valley High School. The following links allow you to see current boundaries, to see a whole plan, or to focus in on how each of the four plans impact an area of the district.

The following maps detail boundary proposals for discussion at the November 14, 2006 public hearing at Golden Valley High School. These plans will be reconsidered by the committee prior to the December public hearing at Bakersfield High School.  These plans were developed by a 50 member committee consisting of parents, school site staff, and community members.  No Kern High School District administrators were members of the committee. Public comment on the plans will be a significant part of this reconsideration.

The proposals below were fashioned according to a specific charge to the committee and in accordance with Kern High School District Board approved criteria.  The charge and criteria are detailed after the map links below.

Current Boundaries

These boundaries went into effect in fall, 2006 with the opening of Frontier High School and will change in fall, 2008 with the opening of Independence and Mira Monte high schools. The proposals listed below the current boundary link detail options that the boundary committee is considering for the 2008 boundary change necessitated by opening the new high schools.

Current Boundary

Boundary Proposals:  Overview

Boundary Proposals: Northeast Focus

Boundary Proposals: Mira Monte Focus

Boundary Proposals: Southeast Focus

Boundary Proposals: Southwest Focus

Boundary Proposals: Northwest Focus

Charge to the Boundary Committee

The boundary committee was formed by the Superintendent and charged to use the Board-adopted guidelines and criteria to develop a proposal for adjusting the current high school attendance boundaries within the metropolitan Bakersfield area to accomplish the following:

1. Ensure that each Kern High School District school will have enrollment within the District recommended range.
2. Avoid boundary changes to Shafter and Kern Valley High Schools.
3. Provide recommendations for the process of implementing the new attendance boundaries.
4. Submit the proposal no later than Wednesday, February 7, 2007 to the Superintendent for his consideration and submission to the Board of Trustees for action.

Board Adopted Criteria Guiding the Boundary Committees

The following Board-adopted criteria, taken as a whole, serve as a measure of the effectiveness of any revised boundary proposal.  The criteria are not a formula, but a set of competing goals which will require compromise in order to achieve a consensus proposal.

The Superintendent is requested to develop a proposal which best considers all criteria simultaneously.  

Purpose of Criteria

The following Board-adopted criteria, taken as a whole, serve as a measure of the effectiveness of any revised boundary proposal. The criteria are not a formula, but a set of competing goals which will require compromise in order to achieve a consensus proposal.

The Superintendent is requested to develop a proposal which best considers all criteria simultaneously.

Criterion #1 Provide the best possible learning opportunities for all students

1. Seek to ensure all schools have student bodies which will utilize comprehensive offerings in both academic and elective areas so that all schools provide equitable opportunities to students of all ability and interest levels.
2. Minimize isolation of lower socio-economic students.
3. Provide district with any recommendations for ensuring that high education quality is maintained in all schools during transitions caused by boundary changes.

Criterion #2 Make the best possible use of existing facilities

1. Ensure that all schools will be utilized to capacity but not become severely over-crowded during the years before another school is built to serve the area.
2. Ensure that each school will have enrollment within the District recommended range.

Criterion #3 Minimize added expenses

1. Set up boundaries which would impose a minimum of additional expenses for transportation, modification to the facilities, or program changes.
2.  Ensure that each school will have enrollment within the District recommended range.

Criterion #4 Minimize disruption of the education programs for each student and school

1. Complete boundaries at least one year in advance of implementation so students will be able to plan for any school boundary changes.
2. Do not require 11th and 12th grade students to change schools.
   [NOTE: incoming 9th & 10th graders are scheduled into new high schools when an area moves to a new high school; when an area moves from an existing high school to an existing high school, only incoming 9th grade students are affected.]
3. Continue district policy that does not require families to send siblings to different schools in a given school year due to a district boundary change.
4. Develop boundaries which will last for longest possible time period without subsequent changes.
5. Consider likely subsequent boundary changes with the future construction of new high schools.
6. Consider feeder school boundaries.
7. Consider the impact of boundary changes on school programs.

Criterion #5 Minimize the movement of students from schools in close proximity to their neighborhoods

Criterion #6 Achieve wide support for proposal by the community

1. Boundary changes are by their very nature disruptive. Given the number of schools and areas likely to be affected by boundary changes in 2008, it is likely that any recommended plan will fail to satisfy all members of the community as fair and appropriate, never-the-less, the Committee should seek wide approval and understanding of plans prior to recommending one or more to the Superintendent for his consideration. Schools and the District benefit from the widest possible community support.
2. Consider correspondence and comment at public hearings in refining and revising plans.
3. Seek to achieve a plan which most community members can accept as fair to the students of the entire district.
4. Understanding that no plan will be without opposition, strive for a plan with features that reflect community concerns and generate minimal opposition.
5. Consider the balance of comments from all public hearings and all other communications to the boundary committee in making final recommendations to the Superintendent.

Additional Information on the boundary process and related issues

Frequently Asked Questions about Boundary Changes

Open Enrollment Information

Intra-district Transfer Policy