District’s letter alerts parents to possible changes

Some SMCISD parents received a letter earlier this week letting them know that their children’s schedules or class assignments might be revised during the first few weeks of the school year based on staffing numbers.

Though some thought that the letter was a sign of poor planning or other problems with the district, officials said that it is not uncommon for some students or teachers be shifted around based on final enrollment and class size numbers.

“Every school district should send this letter out,” said Andrew Fernandez, spokesman for SMCISD, noting that the district has not always done so.

The letter states that staffing decisions are made based on projected enrollment figures. State mandates for class sizes in grades K-4 and some course qualifying factors for secondary campuses mean that for SMCISD classes to stay within class size limits, after all students are enrolled, some students might have to move to another class and some teachers might have to move between classes, grade levels or schools. The key factor — total enrollment — is something of a moving target, Fernandez explained.

“It’s hard to tell at this point,” what enrollment will be, he said, explaining that schools often see a bump in enrollment after Labor Day Weekend. Between the first day of school and the second day, Fernandez said, SMCISD gained 75 students.

Fernandez said that usually, there are not many adjustments — last year, he said, he believes one student was moved to a different class — but that parents are notified in case their child is affected.

Fernandez said that SMCISD strives to keep class sizes down and avoid having to ask the state for class size waivers.

“That’s always our ultimate goal,” he said.

rblackburn@sanmarcosrecord.com

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