Petition to keep the children of Montclair at Shoal Creek

It is our intention as the residents/tax payers of Montclair, a neighborhood in Kansas City Missouri and within the Liberty School District; to immediately cease the movement of our children from Shoal Creek Elementary to Lewis and Clark Elementary for the following reasons:

A. SAFETY   Our CONCERNS are the SAFETY of our children on the bus and the distance and roads they will travel. For our children to be transported to and from school each day they will have to be taken by bus down 291 Highway, cross over interstate 35, and go through many busy intersections.  Lewis and Clark is also twice the distance that these children travel currently to and from Shoal Creek, and their travel to Shoal Creek is also not subject to Highway/Interstate travel or traffic and very busy intersections. In the proposed boundary change they are busing our children twice as far which also adds added expense to the district and is a disregard to the "guidlines" in which thecommittee/board created in the "proposed" boundaries.

B.  Guidlines appointed by the "committee and board".   According to the district stated guidlines the committee is not following it's own guidelines that state:

Criteria #3 Minimize added expenses        Set up boundaries which would impose a minimum of additional expenses for transportation, modification to the facilities or program changes. 

·         Improve transportation routes where possible.

This has been ignored by busing our children twice as far therefore incurring more transportation expenses and putting our children's safety and well being aside.  

Criteria #5 Minimize the movement of students from schools in close proximity to their neighborhoods

The committee/board has also ignored the fact that there are two neighborhoods that literally back to the new school Kellybrook Elementary School which would save those students from being transported to and from Shoal Creek Elementary.  The distance from Fairways to Shoal Creek Elementary is 2.5 miles, which is more than twice the distance from Montclair to Shoal Creek Elementary.  This incurs us as taxpayers additional costs to bus these children from the Fairways/Shoal Creek Valley, and also is a guidline in which the committee/board has not followed.  The distance from Fairways/Shoal Creek Valley to Kellybrook Elementary is .47 mile(s), and also does not take these children in buses out onto Highways and through busy intersections, and again saves us as taxpayers money.  Kellybrook being a half a mile from both Fairways/Shoal Creek Valley makes this their "neighborhood" school without question.  Montclair being closest to Shoal Creek Elementary makes this it's "neighborhood" school.  With Montclair children staying at Shoal Creek Elementary they are also not subjected to the very unsafe travel in school buses on highways and in busy intersections.  It makes absolutely no sense to move children from a neighborhood that is literally "down the street" out of their school, yet allow a neighborhood that is miles "down the highway" children to stay.

Criteria #6 Achieve wide community support for proposal

The committee/board does not have the approval nor support in any way from the residents/tax payers of Montclair.  We have all invested a large amount of money in our homes and have invested extensive tax dollars within this school district.  We are requiring the "proposed" boundaries to be changed and the children of Montclair to continue to go to Shoal Creek Elementary. 

C. Standards We the residents/tax payers of Montclair do not feel that Lewis and Clark Elementary meets the same expectations/standards as our current school, Shoal Creek Elementary.  We have supporting evidence to this fact:

Out of the 8 Liberty district elementary schools, Shoal Creek ranks
2nd, and Lewis and Clark ranks 7th.

Shoal creek map test scores for 2008 (communications and math
combined) was 141.2, and Lewis and Clark was 121.6.

Shoal Creek Student/teacher ratio was 17.4 in 2007, and Lewis and
Clark was 19.3.

According to http://www.schooldigger.com/ Shoal Creek Elementary ranked #31 in the state of Missouri and ranked Lewis and Clark Elementary #153.

We the residents/tax payers of Montclair feel these numbers are unacceptable and demand to stay within our current school, Shoal Creek Elementary.  We do not want to go to an elementary school that ranked 7 out of 8 when we are at the school that ranked 2nd.  We are NOT making or willing to make a move that would put our children in that position.  Lewis and Clark Elementary does not meet or equal to the same standards that our children have had and are acustomed to at Shoal Creek Elementary.

Sincerely,

The Parents, Children, Residents, and most of all TAX PAYERS of Montclair