COMMITTEE READY TO EXAMINE REDISTRICTING

When assistant superintendent Richard Bollwerk says the Cape Girardeau School District's average class size is 22.7, it sounds good.

But, he says, the figure can be misleading. Depending on where a student attends school, the class could have as few as 11 students or as many as 30.

A redistricting committee, which meets for the first time tonight, will look for ways to narrow the class-size gap.

At the same time the committee must consider the racial makeup of the city when redrawing elementary-school boundaries.

The committee meets at 7 at the board of education office, 61 N. Clark. The meeting is open to the public.

"Hopefully we will have a lot of good discussion," said board member Bob Fox, who with board member Steve Wright are co-chairmen of the committee.

They briefly discussed tonight's meeting at the regularly scheduled board of education meeting Monday.

Fox said the redrawn boundaries won't make everyone happy.

"Perhaps people will come back to us and say, Can we do something else?" Fox said. "The only other thing we can do is build another elementary building."

The school district three times has failed to pass a tax increase to address building needs in the district.

The committee will look at how to redraw lines with existing buildings.

Superintendent Neyland Clark said redistricting won't affect the overall average class size in the district. "But the average class size in any given school may change," he added.

At Alma Schrader and Franklin, the average class size is 27 students; at Clippard, the average class size is 23; at Washington, 22; at Jefferson, 21; and at May Greene, 15.

Bollwerk said, "We're hoping the committee can come up with some way to take that 21 at Jefferson and the 27 at Franklin and have both schools at 24."

The averages are based on grades one through six. Kindergarten classes have a board-mandated maximum of 25 students. When a kindergarten class size goes over that number, a second session is started or students are transferred to another elementary school.

Enrollment at each of the buildings: Alma Schrader, 576; Clippard, 476; Franklin, 388; Jefferson, 327; May Greene, 213; and Washington, 327.