Parents at Echo Trail Middle School accuse JCPS of hiding plan to change boundaries

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Parents at Echo Trail Middle School say a Jefferson County Public Schools plan to change boundaries is unacceptable, accusing the district of hiding the plan for more than a year.

The proposal, meant to ease overcrowding at the three-year-old school, has sparked anger and frustration among families. At a Monday evening meeting at Eastern High School, parents voiced their concerns with tears and yelling.

One parent said, "this is a joke, this is incompetence." Another added, "it's breaking my heart because I don't have faith in the system."

Echo Trail opened three years ago to relieve overcrowding in east Louisville, but district officials said faster growth than projected, combined with more families choosing their reside school after bus cuts, has left the school struggling. Teachers are working off carts and, without changes, the school could reach 133% capacity within three years.

JCPS’ proposed fix would move the boundary north of Interstate 64 and west of Valhalla Golf Club, sending students previously in the zone to Crosby Middle School, which has space to spare. But many parents said the new line doesn’t make sense.

Current Echo Trail students could stay, but fifth graders face a tough transition as the path to middle school now splits them from friends.

"I've made probably over 50 friends, maybe more than that, and it's sad to lose them all," Wyatt Recktenwald, a fifth grader, said.

JCPS said it has been studying boundary changes for 18 months, but parents said they only learned about it two weeks ago when it appeared on a Jefferson County Board of Education agenda for a vote. The board decided to table it for a later date.

One parent said "18 months of hiding something from the public is unacceptable."

Board member Taylor Everett said he found out about the plan when parents did. District leaders agreed they could have told parents sooner.

"It's been a relentless effort to try to get this to you in a timely fashion, and we probably failed at that," Robert Moore, JCPS chief of schools, said.

The board still must vote on the proposal.

Everett said he plans to either approve it quickly or wait until next year to give parents time to figure out where their child will go to school.

Another community listening session is scheduled for Tuesday from 6-7 p.m. at Eastern High School. With this part of Louisville growing so fast, district leaders said another boundary change may not be far behind.

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