The Stanwood Camano School District's Capital Facilities Advisory Committee is planning to alter elementary school boundaries starting the 2023-24 school year.

The panel gathered community input during several public forums where the overwhelming majority of parents were firmly against the redistricting. The panel gathered input from local parents and then proceeded to continue to move forward with their plan. We stand in opposition to the boundaries as presented. 

The new boundaries will require bussing Stanwood students from overcrowded schools to Utsalady Elem. on Camano Island. The new boundaries would also require students from all the  Northwest side of Camano who currently attend Utsalady to be bussed down south to Elger Bay. This is not fair or excusable. 

They claim the redistricting is only about attendance yet according to a November 2021 article in the Stanwood Camano News:

‘Like other jurisdictions, the Stanwood-Camano School District is embarking on a redistricting effort for elections.’

’Redistricting occurs once every 10 years to account for changing populations. It comes on the heels of the U.S. Census and affects federal, state and local districts for representation.

The proposed school district boundaries create four regions, each with about 9,300 voters. The school board then consists of members elected from each of the four districts, plus one at-large position.’

They claim the proposed changes to the districts are minor but they will cause logistical nightmares, even more heavy traffic and emotional trauma for our children. 

Studies have shown that moving during childhood can impede school performance, social skills, behavior, and the negative effects can accumulate. Some students who recently moved to Stanwood Camano May now face having to uproot and attend another school miles away. Moving has different effects at different ages, and changing schools adds to the stress. This is concerning given that many families, particularly low-income families, are frequently on the move. Studies showed Home and school moves each had unique effects on children, but school moves had slightly stronger effects on their cognitive scores and emotional problems. 

Proposed Changes: District 1 — mostly south of Stanwood — would lose parts of north downtown Stanwood and gain areas along Pioneer Highway toward Silvana.
District 2 — on Camano’s east and south sides — would gain a small area from District 3 southeast of the intersection of Monticello Drive and West Camano Drive toward Dry Lake Road.
District 3 — covering west and north Camano in addition to part of Stanwood — would gain a small area north of Stanwood from District 4.
District 4 — which mostly covers the area northeast of Stanwood —would only cede areas to the other districts because of its population growth.

Please sign this petition NOW to let the CFAC know we do not agree with the redistricting boundaries and that we want to keep the existing boundaries in place until more agreeable boundaries are presented..