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Medford struggles with overcrowding By DAMIAN MANN Within a matter of months, the Medford School District has gone from cutting positions to calling in reinforcements as enrollment at the two overcrowded high schools soars to record levels. Medford's 18 schools report an all-time record enrollment of 12,901 students, 278 more than last year at this time. North Medford High has 2,109 students - the most ever - forcing administrators to juggle schedules to relieve class sizes that approached 40 students. The district has hired five temporary, part-time teachers to add extra classes in science, math, English, computer and social studies. South Medford High also has its most students ever at 1,941, requiring administrators to add two part-time, temporary teachers. The district has called in retired and substitute teachers to help out, but has no plans of hiring permanent staff after recent cutbacks forced the reduction of more than 30 positions because of a $1.8 million budget shortfall. Superintendent Steve Wisely said the juggling of schedules to bring down class sizes has been an inconvenience to parents, students and teachers. "We've moved lots of kids," he said. "We've moved a lot of teaching staff, and we've changed schedules. People have been very good and understand we're trying to deliver quality education." Wisely said both North and South Medford are considered overcrowded at this point. "For North, the preferred size that would utilize its space properly would be 2,000 students," said Wisely. For South, he said it would be 1,900 students. He anticipates the situation will only get worse as a large number of students in fifth and sixth grades moves through the school system, swelling enrollment at the high schools to even higher levels. By 2004, enrollment could be 2,300 at North and 2,200 at South based on current conditions, said Wisely. This would force the district to increase class sizes as one potential remedy, jeopardizing its Northwest Accreditation Association status, used by colleges and universities as a factor in determining the eligibility of students. Part of the reason the district scrambled over the weekend to rearrange class sizes was to retain the current accreditation, which is renewed on Oct. 1. If a new school isn't built to relieve the overcrowded conditions, Wisely predicts the problem will reach a crisis state by 2004. Plans are being prepared for a skill center that would be built in lieu of a new high school. Wisely said the project has been approved by both the school board and a citizens advisory committee. He said the skill center - estimated to cost $40 million - will go before voters in November 2002. In addition to the skill center, the bond measure would also pay for a new middle school and upgrades to the two high schools. Total cost for all the projects has been estimated at $70 million. Despite the problems of overcrowding, Wisely said the district is growing at a healthy rate. If the number of students remains at its current level through the year, the district would potentially receive additional money from the state, since each student brings in about $5,000 annually. Last year, the district experienced relatively flat enrollment. But the growth this year at the high-school levels caught administrators off guard. North Medford Principal Doug McKenzie said, "We didn't have enough classes and in some cases we were overloaded." Before the rescheduling, some of the classes were approaching 40 students, he said. The school added 13 new classes in core subjects, brought in temporary, part-time teachers, reworked schedules, and shifted teachers and students to different classes. McKenzie expects the school will continue to see a trickle of new students during the next six weeks. South Medford Assistant Principal Paul Cataldo said, "We're definitely full. We've had to shift students from teacher to teacher." Although McKenzie said North Medford could squeeze in a few more older students, Cataldo said the most his school could handle would be 2,000. "We couldn't hold as many as North," he said. Any more rescheduling could become more confusing for students at this point as they become accustomed to their class assignments and teachers, said Cataldo. But, he believes, most seem to understand the need for rescheduling. "We had to shift student loads to make it equitable for everybody," he said. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.