ISD 833: Allow intradistrict transfers to East Ridge!

Sign the petition now: http://chng.it/KNQTDtZ8DH

For the past few years, District 833 (South Washington County Schools) has declined most or all intra district transfer requests to East Ridge from students who attend other high school students in the district. Usually, students from Lake Middle attend East Ridge and students from Woodbury Middle attend Woodbury High, but due to the way the district is zoned, a small percentage of people from Lake Middle go to Woodbury High and from Woodbury Middle to East Ridge. While many of the transfer requests to Woodbury are accepted, very little or none of those going to East Ridge are. The district has provided very little information about why they've declined transfer requests, even when asked directly. Their decision to deny these requests has had a significant impact on some students and their families. Due to the current zoning, students are separated from the peers they've known throughout elementary and middle school, and aren't able to rejoin them due to the denial of transfers. Students also aren't able to access educational opportunities that only exist at East Ridge. This has resulted in unfortunate situations for some students. We plan on changing this for the upcoming school year by organizing a petition to the District 833 school board and by presenting this petition at the July 18th school board meeting.

Why would a student want to transfer to a different school?

• Social - A major complaint of parents and students whose transfer requests have been denied has been the fact that because of the districts zoning, some students are separated from those they have attended elementary and middle school with when they get to high school. The district has been repeatedly criticized for not allowing students to continue in a continuous cohort with persons they are familiar with. This transition from middle school to high school is often a tough time for many students. Studies show that this transition is often negatively impacts students, some examples being how students’ grades tend to drop during their ninth grade year, and how students’ social situations were usually worsened. This transition has been especially rough for the students who were separated from the main cohort, and the denial of intra-district transfers has not helped out. Several students I know have faced emotional problems directly caused by this.
• Academics - Certain classes are only available from certain high schools in the district. Several students I have talked with have mentioned that they would like to transfer in order to take courses not available at Woodbury, such as AP Physics 2 and AP Computer Science. However, since this is not an option, they are forced to either self study the course, or take it online, which looks worse on college applications. More importantly, this prevents the students from learning the information in an appropriate educational setting. This also creates a big hassle when it comes to AP testing, where students have to go to a different school to take the AP exam.
• Proximity - With the current zoning, in some cases, a student may have a shorter commute to East Ridge High instead of Woodbury High, especially in the eastern part of the city. Though it may not seem like much at first, by reducing your commute by a mile, you can save upwards of fifty dollars per school year and reduce your CO2 emissions by nearly 260 pounds!
• Bullying - Students may be facing unfortunate situations where they are being bullied at their current school. Switching to a different school would help them escape from these situations and help them have a better experience in a new environment.

I am a parent of a student who already attends East Ridge. How would supporting this petition benefit me?

• You may have heard how East Ridge already has a lot of students, and doesn't have the capacity for more. However, looking at both schools' websites. you can see that Woodbury High has 1953 students compared to East Ridge's 1809. In addition to this, Woodbury has a smaller building compared East Ridge, which was built in 2009 and took into account the expansive growth of the city. Despite this, Woodbury accepts both intra-district and inter-district transfers. The small amount of people who transfer between the two schools would be unlikely to have a profound impact on the overall student population, as students from Woodbury Middle and Lake Middle that transfer to Woodbury High are accepted. Students in 11th and 12th grade have the option of taking PSEO courses at a local college, which should free up more room for students in those grades who want to transfer.
• Many close knit friend groups are formed during elementary and middle school, and your children probably have had a friend or two who went to Woodbury instead of East Ridge. While some friendships eventually fall apart through lack of contact, many remain strong. In some situations, a student will be separated from everyone they know, in which case they usually have a tough time navigating the existing friend groups at their new school. By supporting this petition, you can help friends maintain their relationship and even reconnect old friends.
• The district has been rezoning parts of the city of Woodbury between the two high schools recently. Though it might not immediately effect you, if you have any children who are currently in middle or elementary school, they may not end up at the same high school as their older siblings in the future. By supporting this effort, you can help guarantee that in the event that your area is rezoned, you'll still be able to send your kids to East Ridge.

How can I help out with this effort?

• Sign the petition and help spread word! Tag it on your social media, tell your friends and family, and put up signs!
• We are planning to present this petition to the District 833 school board on July 18th. If you can, show up and voice your opinion about this topic!
• Ask the district administration to accept transfers to East Ridge. You can find contact information on the District 833 website here.