By Christine Bryant
Staff Writer
Reynoldsburg Schools will hold two public events to address an enrollment issue at the district’s two high schools.
At the Reynoldsburg Board of Education’s March 15 meeting, board president Joe Begeny said the Summit campus has seen an increase in enrollment, while the Livingston campus’ enrollment has decreased.
According to Begeny, 72 percent of incoming freshmen selected Summit as their school of choice, while just 28 percent selected Livingston. That has left the Summit campus nearly 200 students above capacity with an enrollment of nearly 1,400. The Livingston campus, on the other hand, has just 780 students enrolled.
“The board is being asked to look at options,” he said.
Community members are invited to attend an open house and presentation to learn more about possible options and the importance of maintaining the sustainability of the high schools, with events scheduled April 5 at the Summit campus and April 7 at the Livingston campus. A time for the events is yet to be determined.
The Summit campus is home to the Encore and eSTEM Academies, while the Livingston campus houses the BELL Early College and (HS)2 Academies.
The BELL Early College Academy offers students the chance to earn up to 60 hours college credit at no charge to students and families, catering to those interested in business, education, leadership and law. It also provides related degree and certificate programs in partnership with Columbus State Community College.
The Encore Academy offers specialized programming in arts, communication and design, while the eSTEM Academy is for students interested in engineering design and related fields. eSTEM is one of 15 designated Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) schools in Ohio.
The Health Sciences & Human Services Academy, known as (HS)2, is also an Ohio-designated STEM platform school, one of two in the state specializing in medical fields.
In other news, board members approved a split start for the 2016-17 school year. All 9th-grade students at the high school academies will begin school Aug. 10, with all remaining high school students starting Aug. 11.
For Baldwin Road, Waggoner Road Junior, Waggoner Road Middle, Hannah Ashton and Gateway, 6th- and 7th-grade students will attend school Aug. 10, but not attend Aug. 11. On the other hand, 5th- and 8th-grade students will attend school Aug. 11, but not Aug. 10. On Aug. 12, all students will attend school. For the elementary schools – Herbert Mills, Rose Hill, French Run, Taylor Road, Slate Ridge and Summit Road – students who last name begins with A-L will attend school Aug. 10, but not attend on Aug. 11. Students whose last name begins with M-Z will attend Aug. 11, but not Aug. 10. All students will attend Aug. 12.
