Nevertheless, Allen and other school board members expressed deep concern Tuesday about whether the board will have an acceptable attendance map for the new Jesse Wharton Elementary School, which opens this fall. Although the Redistricting Steering Committee promised that attendance lines for Jesse Wharton would be ready by May 1, some board members don't like the fact that they will not be able to consider Jesse Wharton's attendance zone along with other school attendance zones. Neither do board members like the idea of facing a long summer of map reading and drawing without the assistance of the redistricting steering and mapping committees, which will disband June 1. We don't have the luxury of fiddling around with Jesse Wharton. There's not even a moment to spare, said board member Anita Sharpe.
Teachers have to be hired, assigned and transferred.
Bus routes have to be established. Parents need to know where their children are going to go to school. Board Chairwoman Susan Mendenhall said she, too, fears it will be more difficult to draw an acceptable attendance zone for Jesse Wharton alone, while ignoring other nearby schools. It think it would be much better to look at than all at once. But we're going to do what we have to do to get Jesse Wharton open.