New High School Boundary Process

• Table of Contents
• Feedback Summary
• Survey Two Neighborhood Count, Scenario Preference, and Comments
• Summary Table for Scenarios A and D 
• Scenario A with Chart
• Scenario A (Updated SHS)
• Scenario D with Chart
• Scenario D (Modified B)
• Elementary Legend
• 2024 Map Growth Areas

• Scenario A with Chart
• Scenario A (updated SHS)
• Scenario B with Chart
• Scenario B Map
• Scenario C with Chart
• Scenario C Map

• Scenario A with Chart
• Scenario A (updated SHS)
• Scenario D (Modified B) with Chart
• Scenario D (Modified B)

The development of boundary scenarios was guided by the preferences gathered through the community survey conducted in August and September of 2023. The identified preferences include:

• Proximity to residence
• Demographics
• Feeder School System
• Enrollment Numbers
• Minimization of Student Impact
• Safety and Transportation. 

Additionally, the Pasco School Board provided instructions to align with the Pasco School District's Long Term Facility and Instructional Plan, emphasizing that all high school students should be accommodated in 'brick and mortar' buildings and support the implementation of Dual Language Programs in K-12.

The Boundary Input Team utilized data from the initial scenarios 1, 2, and 3 (refer to Background Information below). Recognizing the complexity of the task at hand, the Boundary Input Team identified the need for multiple "Guiding Principles" to guide their work. Scenarios A, B, and C were shaped by principles such as proximity to the residence, demographics, feeder schools, and maintaining similar enrollment numbers.

Boundary Process Background Information for Scenarios 1, 2, and 3

The Pasco School District Board of Directors approved a Long Term Facility Management plan, outlining strategies to address capacity needs within physical school buildings. Furthermore, the School Board aimed to incorporate community feedback to ensure that the new high school boundaries accurately reflected the community's perspectives.

Throughout September, the Pasco School District conducted a ThoughtExchange survey to seek community input on the principles guiding the creation of new high school boundaries. More than 2,000 thoughts were submitted and rated during this month-long engagement. The Guiding Principles presented below encompass both the foundational principles established by the School Board and the community's Boundary Guiding Principles, which will serve as the basis for drafting the initial high school boundaries.

Boundary Guiding Principles

Initial Scenarios as Outlined by the Guiding Principles

As the Boundary Input Team and JUB Engineering worked together to being the drafting process, our team looked at the following scenarios: 

• Scenario A: Closest to Residence
  • This scenario only incorporates the closest high school to each neighborhood by straight line distance. In this scenario PHS would be over brick-and-mortar capacity by 728 students and CHS would be under capacity by 1,081 students.

• Scenario B: Travel Time
  • This scenario only incorporates the closest high school to each neighborhood by AM travel time. In this scenario PHS would be over brick-and-mortar capacity by 677 students and CHS would be under capacity by 1,637 students.

• Scenario C: Feeder School
  • This scenario only incorporates a middle school feeder system into each high school. In this scenario PHS would be 446 over brick-and-mortar capacity and CHS would be under capacity by 1084 students.

Yes. The City of Pasco, JUB Engineering and the Pasco School District work closely in their long-term planning.  

When the Boundary Input Team first met, the team looked at three maps (A,B,C) provided by our engineering team JUB Engineering. 

Scenario A mapped out every student in the Pasco School District according to their residence. In scenario A those students closest to PHS are mapped in purple, CHS in blue and SHS in green. In this In this scenario PHS would be over brick-and-mortar capacity by 728 students and CHS would be under capacity by 1,081 students.

Scenario B that was studied was similar in that student’s were mapped according to travel time to their nearest school. This scenario would continue to put PHS over capacity by 677 students and deliver CHS with 1637 students under capacity. 

Scenario C looked at the possibility of creating a feeder school system with our existing middle schools. 

It is the philosophy of the Pasco School District and the Boundary Input Team to:

1. collect feedback from the community
2. analyze the feedback/date to make an informed decision
3. share those findings with stakeholders. 

This feedback loop will happen after each round of surveys. 

Scenario A was continued on into Round 2 because the Boundary Input Team did not feel that there was enough feedback provided from the elementary neighborhoods that were impacted the most by this scenario. The Boundary Team wanted to collect more information about how this scenario would impact students in Whittier/Curie, Chess and Frost. 

Scenario D was a combination of previous scenarios B and C. Community members felt that these scenarios needed more room for growth in SHS and CHS needed to be filled closer to capacity. Additionally, feedback that the addition of the McGee neighborhood to CHS made sense due to the alignment of McLoughlin as the middle school that McGee already was assigned to. 

A ThoughtExchange was open from August 16 - October 2 asking the community the following question: 
What is most important to you about how Pasco School District (PSD) makes decisions about boundary revisions for PSD high schools? Why is this important to you? 

We had 2,132 participants, 1,258 thoughts contributed, and 24,229 ratings. Based on the collected feedback, the following Guiding Principles surfaced as top priorities for our community for determining new high school boundaries. 

• Proximity to Residence​

• Demographics​

• Feeder School​

• Enrollment Numbers​

• Minimize Impact to Students​

• Safety​

• Transportation

The guiding principles, in combination with the Pasco School Board Foundational Principles below, are what will help guide boundary decisions. 

• Community Engagement​

• Diversity (represent the overall community to the best extent possible)​

• Program Consideration (ex: Dual Language)

In October 2023, we formed a Boundary Input Technical Team consisting of community members who will work with community, engineering partner, and school board to help shape the new high school boundaries.

View the Boundary Input Technical Team meeting schedule

JUB Engineering team created an initial set of 6 Boundary Drafts utilizing Pasco School District data. These initial drafts took into account the Guiding Principles of:​

• Proximity-Travel time​

• Proximity-Straight line distance​

• Feeder School ​

• Hybrid Feeder/Proximity​

• Variations to allow for similar size enrollments and demographics​

The district will be offering opportunities for our families and community to provide the Boundary Input Team with feedback on draft boundary proposals. Dates below are Open House events that families from across the district can attend and provide feedback.

Explore and Provide Feedback on High School Boundary Scenarios - Online Survey Opens January 24

Community Feedback Open Houses 

• January 23, 5 – 7:30 pm: Stevens Middle School​

• February 5, 5 – 6:30 pm: Ochoa Middle School​

• February 13, 5 – 6:30 pm: Ray Reynolds Middle School

• February 13, 6:30 – 8:00 pm: Chiawana High School ​

• March 5, 5:30 – 7 pm: McLoughlin Middle School​

• March 21, 5:30 – 7 pm: Pasco High School​

Download the High School Boundary Feedback Sessions flyer

ATP Meeting Presentations and Feedback Opportunities 

The Pasco School District Board of Directors adopted a Long-Term Facility Management Plan that outlined strategies to fully meet capacity needs within the brick-and-mortar buildings. Additionally, the School Board wanted to ensure that community feedback was implemented to better ensure that new high school boundaries were representative of the community.

There are many things that must be considered when developing new high school boundaries. Below you will find examples (these are not actual proposed scenarios) that represent the reason we must look at scenarios from multiple perspectives and lenses. 

Example Scenarios NOT Being Used and Why

Scenario 1: Only considering the high school closest to each neighborhood

Why doesn't it work?
This scenario only incorporates the closest high school to each neighborhood by straight line distance. In this scenario, Pasco High School would be over brick-and-mortar capacity by 728 students and Chiawana High School would be under capacity by 1081 students.

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​Scenario 2: Only incorporating the closest high school to each neighborhood by AM travel time

Why doesn't it work?
This scenario only incorporates the closest high school to each neighborhood by AM travel time. In this scenario, Pasco High School would be over brick-and-mortar capacity by 677 students and Chiawana High School would be under capacity by 1,637 students.

​

Scenario 3: Only considering a middle school feeder system into each high school

Why doesn't it work?
This scenario only incorporates a middle school feeder system into each high school. In this scenario, Pasco High School would be 446 over brick-and-mortar capacity and Chiawana High School would be under capacity by 1084 students.

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