Scituate school officials are recommending a new elementary school redistricting plan that would move about 607 students and reshape attendance boundaries before the district transitions from four elementary schools to three in 2027.
District administrators presented “Option 3” during an April 27 School Committee meeting after several months of public meetings and revisions tied to the construction of the town’s new elementary school. Officials said the proposal attempts to minimize student movement while maintaining balanced class sizes across the district’s future elementary schools.
The redistricting process stems from the district’s decision to move from four elementary schools to three when the new school opens in fall 2027. During an April 6 public information session, Interim Superintendent Dr. Thomas Raab said the Massachusetts School Building Authority approved the new school project with a capacity of about 460 students because existing space remained available at Jenkins and Wampatuck elementary schools. He said the combined enrollment at Cushing and Hatherly elementary schools exceeded 600 students, making redistricting necessary.
“We knew we couldn’t fit that into the new building, and so we had to redistrict some students from Cushing in order to go to all three buildings to make that work,” Raab said.
The district plans to close Cushing and Hatherly elementary schools when the new school opens. Students would then attend the new elementary school, Jenkins Elementary or Wampatuck Elementary.
Assistant Superintendent Ryan Lynch told the committee the recommendation followed feedback collected after earlier versions of the map were presented in March and April.
“We recognize that this is a change for every school in our district, but we want to try to have an impact that’s with the least number of students moving as possible,” Lynch said.
The proposed map would keep all students currently assigned to Jenkins and Wampatuck within those school zones while redistributing students from Cushing among the district’s three future elementary schools.
Consultant Matthew Cropper of Cropper GIS said earlier draft plans moved some students out of the Wampatuck and Jenkins districts, but officials revised the proposal after hearing concerns from residents during the public process.
“We got feedback from the public about a scenario of modifications that could be considered because when we do this work, we work to empower the public with the ability to give us constructive feedback,” Cropper said.
Under the recommended plan, the new elementary school would enroll an estimated 476 students, Jenkins would enroll about 434 students and Wampatuck would enroll about 396 students. Officials said the district is targeting average class sizes of about 20 students.
Cropper said Option 3 reduced the projected number of impacted students from roughly 660 under previous proposals to about 607 students.
The district said the plan is intended to remain stable long term and avoid future redistricting changes.
“In the history of the district, we know that there was some minor redistricting at different times,” Lynch said. “This led to disruptions for some of our families and schools. And so really the goal here working with Mr. Crawford is to produce a plan that will be consistent for 20 years.”
Officials also emphasized that the transition remains in its early stages and would unfold over more than a year if approved by the committee.
“We really wanted to try and minimize the social emotional impact on children primarily by doing this a year and a half ahead of time,” Raab said during the April 6 session. “We wanted to make sure that parents and teachers have plenty of time to become accustomed to the new changes and have plenty of time for that transition.”
Elementary principals outlined transition plans that would begin during the 2026-27 school year. Those efforts include orientation events, family meetups, transition planning teams and efforts to help students build connections before entering their new schools.
Principal Kathryn Ciulla said school leaders are focused on helping students navigate what will be a major change for the district.
“This is a huge transition for our entire community,” Ciulla said during the April 6 session. “This is not just about Cushing, this is not just about Hatherly.”
School officials also discussed a possible separate process for the fifth grade class affected by the redistricting. Raab said no decisions have been made, but district leaders plan to review possible options after the School Committee votes on a final plan.
“The school committee vote on the redistricting really is a 20-year decision,” Raab said. “They really need to take all of the information they have and make that decision based on the next 15 to 20 years here.”
The School Committee is expected to vote on a final redistricting plan May 18.
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