Brentwood Home Page staff reports
The Williamson County Schools Board of Education is about to make what arguably will be its most difficult and important decision in recent years. The 12-member board is expected to vote tonight on a district-wide rezoning plan that will determine what schools students attend for the next four to five years.

A special called meeting is scheduled for 5 p.m. today in the auditorium of the county administrative complex, 1320 W. Main Street, Franklin. It will not be broadcast.

The meeting follows two full weeks of board meetings, work sessions, community meetings and a district-wide phone survey.

An initial rezoning plan was commissioned by the board last spring and released Sept. 16 by school planning software company, Educational Logistics, Inc. or Edulog. After a series of public meetings and much discussion, Superintendent Dr. Mike Looney unveiled a revised plan – as well as an alternative of that plan -- at a special called board meeting on Monday, Sept. 20.

In the revised plan, 3,058 students – or roughly 10 percent of the system’s 31,000 students – would be affected. About 4,500 students, or 15 percent, would be rezoned under the Edulog plan.

The rezoning process was undertaken to fulfill three goals: to maintain consistent feeder patterns as much as reasonably possible; to maximize the use of facilities; and to take into account proximity to schools.

The Williamson County Commission, the school system’s funding body, has indicated it will not approve any new schools in the county until all existing facilities are at capacity. 

BHP editor’s note: Information shared late in the Sept. 20th school board meeting indicated that Sonoma and Tuscany Hills developments would be rezoned to Kenrose Elementary School. According to Susan Parker, Williamson County Schools planning and zoning specialist, those students would go to the new Breezeway Elementary if the rezoning plan is approved at Friday's special called school board meeting. BHP regrets the misinformation.