CONTACT Debra Marlow
Director, Community Relations
748-1433
May 23, 2008

For immediate release

Growth task force to study rising enrollment, school construction, use of facilities

            A task force of school officials, county leaders and community residents will meet next week to begin studying school enrollment trends and their impact on Chesterfield County Public Schools’ facilities, planning and budget. The first meeting is May 29 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the School Administration Building, 9900 Krause Road.

The task force is charged with preparing recommendations for the Chesterfield County School Board relative to the school division’s long-range planning and budget processes, alternatives to building new schools and providing input for the county’s comprehensive plan update. The group will meet through October and is scheduled to make recommendations to the School Board in November.

            Topics of discussion include identifying growth-related school issues; school construction, additions and renovations; alternatives to bricks and mortar; and cost and financing of schools. In addition to receiving local presentations, the task force will receive information about how other school divisions are working to successfully resolve growth-related issues.

            There are approximately 58,000 students currently enrolled in Chesterfield County Public Schools, the fourth-largest school division in the state and one of the 100 largest in the country. More than half of the division’s comprehensive schools are at or above their functional capacity, and more than 300 trailers are being used as school classrooms.

            “While we are making progress through redistricting and the construction and opening of five new schools over a three-year period, we still have significant growth issues ahead,” Superintendent Marcus J. Newsome said. “With all of the attractive opportunities that Chesterfield and its school division offer, we must be prepared to efficiently and effectively accommodate student enrollments that increase substantially annually.”

            Dale District School Board representative David S. Wyman and former Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction Dr. JoLynne DeMary will co-chair the task force. The group comprises school and county government officials, representatives from the Chesterfield County Council of PTAs and Chesterfield Education Association and local business leaders and partners.

            The meeting schedule is June 26, Aug. 28, Sept. 25 and Oct. 30. Times and locations will be announced at the May 29 meeting. Additional information about the task force will be available at chesterfield.k12.va.us after the task force’s first meeting.

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