ASHLAND — Changes are coming in Ashland City Schools.
Supt. Steve Paramore announced at last year’s State-of-the-City address that the district would undergo an elementary reconfiguration, to take effect at the beginning of the 2025-2026 academic year.
The change would impact Reagan and Edison elementary schools, which both currently house the district’s kindergarten to third-grade students. Reagan also houses the Little Arrows Preschool program.
But, starting in the fall of 2025, Reagan Elementary School will instruct pre-K-first graders only. Edison will become home to all the district’s second- and third-grade students.
At Paramore’s first State-of-the-Schools address Wednesday, he said he hoped the reconfiguration would serve several purposes, among them: fostering a sense of unity among students from the beginning of their school experience; allowing for more staff collaboration; and aligning staff with current enrollment levels.
Paramore has previously noted finances support the reconfiguration push. Reagan Elementary School’s demographics mean the school was at-risk of losing out on Title I funding.
Much of Paramore’s State-of-the-Schools address focused on reconfiguration, and specifically, transportation logistics that would accompany it.
His speech also highlighted each of the district’s buildings while recognizing the staff that serves students each day.
(Watch the full State of the Schools address here.)
Switching lanes
The district administered a survey to parents last year regarding the reconfiguration. Paramore said Wednesday transportation served as one of the top concerns in the survey results.
To address those issues, Paramore unveiled a plan to offer a morning shuttle for students whose parents might now have to travel to more than one building to drop off their students.
“As you look at your family dynamic, you need to consider where you live, how you want to utilize our shuttle in the morning, how you want to utilize your personal vehicle for drop off,” Paramore said.
With the shuttle, parents who have a student at Edison may also drop off a kindergartner, first-grader, fourth-grader or fifth-grader at the same place. The district will then provide grade-level specific shuttles to take students from Edison to either Reagan or Taft Intermediate School.
Grade-level specific shuttles will also be available to take students from Reagan Elementary School to either Taft or Edison.
Shuttle students are to be dropped off at 8:10 a.m. Arrival doors open at both Reagan and Edison elementary schools at 8:20 a.m., and at Taft at 8:30 a.m.
Since the reconfiguration is only happening at the elementary levels, Paramore said the middle school and high school bus routes would not be affected.
All parents who want to use the district’s shuttles will need to fill out the district’s bus opt-in form. That form is available on the district website. It’s a Google form parents can complete in the district’s Final Forms platform.
Along with the shuttles, Paramore unveiled new traffic patterns for student drop-off and pick-up at Reagan and Edison.
Parents can see those new traffic patterns in the video of Paramore’s speech, beginning around minute 48 through 54.