DMPS Proposes New Attendance Areas for Secondary Schools
In 1987, Ronald Reagan was President, Hayden Fry was coach of the Iowa football team, the Berlin Wall was standing, and Des Moines Public Schools made its last major change to school attendance areas.
A lot of things change in a quarter of a century, both around the world and here at home. To respond to changes in order to better serve students and meet the needs of schools, Des Moines Public Schools is proposing new attendance areas for secondary schools. The most significant and positive result of this change will be that in almost every case, the attendance areas of the high schools and middle schools will now align, creating a more consistent “feeder system” throughout the district. This will allow for better planning and coordination between high schools and middle schools in a variety of programs and services, as well as with the neighborhoods they serve.
Des Moines Public Schools will hold a series of meetings for parents over the next two weeks to present the proposed attendance areas, discuss the benefits of the changes, and answer questions. The meetings will be held as follows:
Wednesday, September 19
Hoover High School, 4800 Aurora Avenue
Thursday, September 20
North High School, 501 Holcomb Avenue
Monday, September 24
Roosevelt High School, 4419 Center Street
Tuesday, September 25
East High Schook 815 East 13th Street
Wednesday, September 26
Lincoln High School, 2600 SW 9th Street
All of the meetings will begin at 6:00 PM and be held in the school library/media center.
Additional information about the changes is available online at attendanceareas.dmschools.org.
If approved, the new attendance areas would take effect with the start of the 2013-14 school year. Students who are members of the Classes of 2014 or 2015 will be able to stay at their current high school, as can students who will be in 8th grade next year. Out of 32,000 students in Des Moines Public Schools, approximately 350 middle school students and 250 high school students would attend a different middle or high school as a result of the new attendance areas.
