• Enrollment growth in Blaine, Champlin and Dayton areas and the repurposing of Franklin Elementary in Anoka for district facility solutions are driving forces for elementary boundary adjustments. 

• Middle school changes in Blaine are due to an imbalance in enrollment between Roosevelt MIddle School and Northdale Middle School that has an impact on educational resources for students. 

• District policy directs elementary boundaries to be in effect for a minimum of five years, although the process was moved forward one year due to address enrollment across the district. 

• The timing of all these factors together has led to this consideration, with the goal of maintaining quality education and efficient use of taxpayer resources for schools. 

The School Board will make a final decision on the attendance boundaries after staff, parents/guardians and community members provide feedback on proposals. Board members will consider proposals and provide feedback to staff at the school board meeting on Nov. 7. A final decision is scheduled for the school board meeting on Nov. 21. 

Maps will not be available for review until they are shared at the community meetings. They will then be posted on the this website for review and comment. 

The meetings and sharing of proposals is the first step in the process of setting new boundaries, and the district is committed to reviewing and considering options should they better align with the planning criteria.

The boundary adjustment process is guided by a set of planning parameters that include:

• Following state guidelines.

• Effective use of district resources.

• Ensuring all students have the opportunity to receive comparable educational experiences.

• The teacher/student ratio, established by the School Board through the budget process, determines adequate space.

• Maintain lower teacher/student ratios at elementary schools, most notably kindergarten and first grade.

• Ensure educational supports and programming is based on the student demographics of the attendance boundary.

• Design bus rides of reasonable lengths.

• Facilitate walking to school for students living within a mile of their school (if there aren’t hazards present on the route).  

• Adjoining boundaries are contiguous and adjoining to minimize disruptions and ensure efficiencies.

• Maintain current high school attendance boundaries.

• Consider growth from current and future residential development. 

• Strive to establish boundaries to remain in effect for at least five years at elementary schools and ten years at secondary schools.

Yes. Community and/or staff feedback could inspire changes between now and the school board decision, tentatively set for Nov. 21.  Please continue to stay informed on this topic. Regular updates will be shared in district and school communications.

Attend the community meetings or view the archived recordings of the meetings online and provide feedback using the online feedback form. Information provided through this process will be shared directly with the school board and also summarized in a report provided for consideration by the school board. 

After the School Board decides on the new attendance boundaries, they will go into effect for the 2023-24 school year. 

Yes, as long as you register during the priority registration dates for current families you are guaranteed a spot at your new school. 

The School District reviews enrollment and projected enrollment annually. School board policy directs five years of permanency in boundaries for elementary schools and 10 years for middle schools and high schools. Boundary decisions made this fall for the 2023-24 school year will be made based on these standards. However, significant changes in growth patterns could cause the school board to modify their standards for permanency. 

A process to determine new boundaries for elementary schools will take place between September and December 2022. The district will provide proposals and collect community feedback prior to any decisions by the School Board. Information about the public meetings and opportunities to provide feedback will be shared in school district websites, newsletters, and other communications outlets. The district understands the emotional and operational issues surrounding boundary adjustments and works hard to minimize the impacts on families. 

The boundaries for the Anoka-Hennepin School District with other districts are not changing. This type of change is time consuming and difficult to achieve as it requires approval from the Minnesota Legislature and surrounding districts.

The district is divided into five clusters, each of which represents the five high schools - Andover, Anoka, Blaine, Champlin Park and Coon Rapids. Elementary and middle schools that feed into the five high schools are a part of these clusters. Five elementary schools are a part of two clusters, meaning students go to two sets of high schools. These schools are Crooked Lake, Eisenhower, Rum River, Sand Creek, and University Avenue elementary schools. 

Anoka-Hennepin Schools has space for student enrollment growth over the next ten years at the secondary level and can manage existing schools by limiting open-enrolled students and in-district transfers. The process to add a high school and/or middle school would be a long-term planning proposition that would include a voter-approved referendum. New secondary schools are not being considered at this time.

Ensuring a strong transition for students and families is essential. Options for fifth and eighth grade students to remain at their current school will be offered. The in-district transfer process will need to be followed in order for a student to do this. Transportation will not be available. For students moving schools, sites will provide welcoming activities for students and families to support a strong start in their new school of attendance. 

Student transportation schedules and bell times will be determined following the attendance area process and are not part of the boundary decision. There are no recommended changes for school bell times as part of this process.

The district follows planning parameters when making recommendations. The goal is to provide transportation within a reasonable standard, which is determined to be under 45 minutes for the longest routes. 

Changes in staff assignments will be in alignment with current contract language and follow the traditional district timelines in order to make an orderly transition for the 2023-24 school year. 

High school attendance boundaries are not proposed to change at this time. Enrollments between Roosevelt Middle School and Northdale Middle School will be rebalanced as part of this process to ensure quality programming and resources for students at each school. There are no other middle school changes proposed. 

Class size guidelines are approved by the School Board and are not a function of state government. 

Anoka-Hennepin elementary schools are projected to operate within the class size guidelines approved by the School Board. The ranges per class include:

• Grade K: 19-22

• Grade 1: 20-23

• Grade 2: 24-27

• Grade 3 26-29

• Grade 4: 27-30

• Grade 5: 27-32

Staff to student ratios that are posted on the internet from non-school sources are also not data created by the school district. Therefore, the district is not able to comment on the validity of the numbers shared.

The district is not pursuing portable classrooms as a strategy based on the long-term goal to remove all portable classrooms from operation starting in 2019 as a result of the Fit for the Future referendum. At that time, the community task force found portable classrooms to be a safety and security risk, and some of the portable classrooms (which were intended to be temporary) were nearly 30 years old when they were finally removed between 2019-2021. An addition is being constructed at Sunrise Elementary to allow additional space starting in the 2024-25 school year. 

The in-district transfer option is for a student who resides in the Anoka-Hennepin School District and wants to transfer to a different Anoka-Hennepin school from their regularly assigned school. 

Transportation is the responsibility of the parents/guardians. Families that apply during the application period (Dec. 1 through Jan. 15) will be considered first. Details about the in-district transfer process is available on the district website at ahschools.us/enroll.

No. However, families will need to let the district know of their plans if the boundaries change for their home/originally-assigned school or current school. The district will reach out to affected families in December on this issue. 

The district will follow the in-district transfer request process. The in-district transfer option is for a student who resides in the Anoka-Hennepin School District and wants to transfer to a different Anoka-Hennepin school from their regularly assigned school. Current fifth-grade students will have a priority status to remain at their school if they are affected by the boundary adjustment process. Students in other grades could also be accepted on a space available basis.

Once a decision on boundaries is made by the school board on Nov. 21, families will receive communication regarding their school of attendance for next year.  

If your student has an in-district transfer to one of the schools involved in the boundary changes, you will not need to re-apply for in-district transfer for next year using the existing process.

Students that opted to accept an invitation for an in-district transfer from Northdale to Roosevelt in the fall of 2021/winter of 2022 may stay at Roosevelt with district transportation provided through eighth-grade.

Open enrolled students will remain at their school of attendance. Open enrolled students attending Franklin Elementary will need to select another school site in the district.