Petition to the Fern Ridge School District Board of Directors

We, the undersigned parents, guardians, staff members, taxpayers, and community members of the Fern Ridge School District, are asking the School Board to reconsider its September 21, 2026 decision to restructure our elementary schools by separating students into a K–2 school and a 3–5 school.

This is a significant change to the elementary school experience of children and families throughout our community. We believe a decision of this magnitude deserves meaningful community input and careful consideration of the long-term effects on students, families, and our schools.

Many families have serious concerns about this restructuring, including:

- Separating elementary-aged siblings who would otherwise attend the same K–5 school together.
- Creating additional transportation and scheduling burdens for families who may now have children attending multiple schools.
- Disrupting established school communities and relationships between students, families, teachers, and staff.
- Removing the traditional K–5 elementary experience that many families value and intentionally want for their children.
- Creating additional transitions for young children, requiring students to change schools after second grade rather than remaining within one elementary school community through fifth grade.
- Potentially pushing families to explore educational options outside of the district in order to preserve a K–5 experience or keep elementary-aged siblings within the same school community.

For many families, this is about much more than convenience. Our elementary schools are communities. Children develop relationships with teachers, staff, classmates, and older and younger students. Parents build relationships within those schools as well. Changing that structure affects the experience of families throughout the district.

We recognize that the School Board and district administration must make difficult decisions and consider enrollment, staffing, finances, and educational needs. However, we believe the voices of the families directly affected by such a substantial restructuring deserve meaningful consideration before a permanent change is implemented.

We respectfully request that the Fern Ridge School District Board of Directors reconsider the September 21, 2026 decision to restructure the elementary schools into separate K–2 and 3–5 schools and maintain the current K–5 elementary structure while additional community input and alternative solutions are considered.

By signing this petition, we are asking the Board to hear the concerns of the community, reconsider this decision, and provide families with a meaningful opportunity to participate in determining the future structure of our elementary schools.

Our children, families, and school communities deserve to have their voices heard.