SUFFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — The contentious issue of public school zoning in Suffolk has ended with the school board’s decision to partially rezone some of the district’s elementary and middle schools.
Florence Bowser, Driver and Creekside elementary schools, and Colonel Fred Cherry and John Yeates middle schools will be affected by the decision made at Thursday night’s school board meeting.
High school zones in the district will not change
District officials said that rezoning was needed to eliminate overcrowding, fill underutilized space and increase racial diversity.
Some parents weren’t happy with proposed changes, saying new placements would move students to unaccredited schools farther from home.
Superintendent Dr. Deran Whitney says the approved plan does not fully implement the district’s goal of diversifying classrooms, but it moves them one step closer.
The new zoning takes effect in September.
