Lower Merion School Board to Vote on Redistricting Plan

by KYW's Brad Segall

The Lower Merion Board of School Directors in Pennsylvania was expected to vote on Monday night on a controversial redistricting plan to even out the number of students at the township’s two high schools.

The district has been grappling with how to balance enrollment when construction is finished at the new Harriton and Lower Merion High Schools in Rosemont and Ardmore. Under the plan, some students who live within walking distance of Lower Merion High would be bused to Harriton. District spokesman Douglas Young says the plan is being driven by geography:

“The reality is that we have two schools that are very poorly placed within the community. If you drew a line and divided the community in half, 80 percent of the kids would fall in the eastern half of the township.”

School officials have fielded more than a thousand e-mails regarding the plan and it’s sparked protests from families whose children would be affected by the changes.

Young says the board is looking for a way to best balance the values of the community along with the educational needs of the students.