Proposed boundary change in Sycamore School District could impact all five elementary schools

SYCAMORE – Sycamore Community School District 427 is soliciting parent and community feedback on a plan that could change which elementary school parents send their children to as early as this fall.

The proposed elementary school boundary changes are being considered at the district level as District 427 grapples with uneven population growth on the city’s north side. Officials have said the growth has lead to overflow at North Grove Elementary School compared to lower census numbers on the south side.

No decision has yet been made by the district, although officials have said if approved, the plans could go into effect as early as the 2023-24 school year, which begins in August. As part of the vetting process, district leaders will hold public meetings at each of Sycamore’s five public elementary schools in January to invite parents and others to weigh in.

Those who can’t attend the meetings are encouraged to submit feedback by emailing communications@s427.org.

Superintendent Steve Wilder said he encourages district staff and community members to share their feedback. He said he understands the change could be disruptive to students.

“We know that any changes will impact all of our schools and impact our families,” Wilder said in a video message to Sycamore parents. “We recognize that this will not be easy for the students, families and staff in our district. Even if your student won’t need to change schools they may have a friend who is impacted.”

Community meetings for each elementary school will begin Monday.

The first meeting is at 7 p.m. Monday at North Grove Elementary School, 850 Republic Ave. Another will take place at 7 p.m. Jan. 18 at Southeast Elementary School, 718 Locust St. The third meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Jan. 25 at West Elementary School, 240 Fair St., and the fourth at 7 p.m. Jan. 26 at South Prairie Elementary School, 820 Borden Ave. The final meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Jan. 30 at North Elementary School, 1680 Brickville Road.

“We know that there will be questions and feedback, which is why we scheduled meetings in each elementary schools,” Wilder told parents in the video. “If the school board votes to amend the boundaries for the [2023-24] school year we want you to know that we will have plans in place to make transitions as smooth as possible.”

Uneven population growth

The district’s current elementary school boundaries went into effect when North Grove Elementary School opened in 2009.

Since the start of the school year last fall, Sycamore District 427 has conducted an ongoing elementary school boundaries study. The study was meant to delve into elementary school census numbers and community growth, which Wilder said has grown in a way “not exactly projected.”

Wilder said the study’s initial findings show that the district needs to better balance elementary school enrollment across its five buildings.

“We have seen residential growth in the northeast portion of our community, which has primarily impacted the enrollment at North Grove,” Wilder said. “However, the south side of our community has not seen the same level of development and therefore the enrollments at South Prairie and Southeast Elementary schools have not increased at the same pace as North Grove.”

When contacted Thursday, some Sycamore elementary school staff referred comment to district administration. Wilder told the Daily Chronicle the principals and teachers at impacted elementary schools have only been shown a tentative boundaries plan.

“In addition to the community meetings we’re holding, we’re also meeting with the staff at each elementary building this month,” Wilder wrote in an email Thursday. “They might have a better perspective at the end of the month.”

Census numbers for Sycamore elementary schools show North Grove Elementary has the highest student population by more than 100 students compared to the district’s other four elementary schools. The data shows census numbers collected as of last fall, after the district’s five-day enrollment data collection. Numbers were provided to the Daily Chronicle Thursday by Kellie Vinz, executive assistant to the superintendent.

According to the data, North Grove Elementary has 476 students, followed South Prairie Elementary with 368 students – however, 113 of those are enrolled in the Little Spartans Early Learning program for children younger than 5.

Southeast Elementary listed 300 students, while North Elementary had 254 and West Elementary had 247 students, data shows.

What would boundary changes look like?

To address the lopsided enrollment, Wilder put forth a tentative plan to modify the boundaries of the district’s elementary school.

North, Southeast, West and South Prairie elementary schools would all take on more students if the plan as put forward were approved.

Here are the changes that would occur if the plan is approved by Sycamore Community School District 427′s Board of Education:

• Residences bordered by Main Street, Mount Hunger Road and the Kishwaukee River would change over to within North Elementary School’s boundary.
• Residences between Main Street, the Kishwaukee River and State Street would become West Elementary School homes.
• Southeast Elementary School would welcome the entirety of the Stone Prairie rental community.
• Residences bordered by Sacramento Street, DeKalb Avenue, Somonauk and Edward streets, as well as homes between Meadow Lane, DeKalb Avenue, South Cross Street and Edward Street would be folded into West Elementary School territory.
• The Woodgate subdivision, bordered by DeKalb Avenue and Peace Road, would fall within the South Prairie Elementary school boundary.

Wilder said the suggested boundary revisions were made after reviewing the current boundaries, considering the projected growth of Sycamore, discussing the options with the administrative team and gathering community feedback.

“As we developed our plan we looked to use natural boundaries such as roads, and borders of neighborhoods and subdivision to avoid redrawing boundary lines down the middle of streets within neighborhoods,” Wilder said. “As a result our tentative plan impacts all of our elementary schools.”