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Challenge may benefit city schools

There will be no easy answer for how the city of Portsmouth handles the uneven distribution of students at its three elementary schools, but the opportunity is at hand to craft a new vision for those schools.

A section of the federal No Child Left Behind Act is allowing the families of roughly 30 students to transfer the youth from Dondero School to Little Harbour School. While the latter school has the capacity to handle the influx it exacerbates the unequal distribution of enrollment. This fall, Little Harbour is anticipating 516 students, Dondero is projected to have 301 students and New Franklin is projected to have 272.

The growing enrollment at Little Harbour prompts concerns about unequal student-teacher ratios and overcrowding at the school. The transfer of students raises a series of other questions, including the disputable perception that Little Harbour offers a better elementary education. It raises further concerns that the city hasn't redistricted its elementary school districts in about 10 years and the growing disparity of enrollment is linked in part to that delayed necessity.

Redistricting was a contentious and emotional issue in the last decade and it will surely be so again if the School Board takes this path, which seems to be unavoidable. But the solution to this challenge goes beyond redrawing lines, especially if the option of school choice remains in coming years.

Instead, it appears the best approach is to think and act in a long-term manner, and it appears the School Board is ready to begin doing so. One intriguing option is to move away from the neighborhood school model and instead use the school buildings according to grade. There is certain to be resistance to this concept, but it's worth noting that the city over the years has closed other neighborhood schools, with the most recent being Sherburne School, which once served the Pannaway Manor neighborhood.

Exeter Area GFWC host craft fair July 16 | SeacoastOnline.com

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