New International Baccalaureate School And Other Changes Ahead For Jeffco Middle School Students
Changes are on the way at some Jefferson County Schools following a federal judge’s approval of a realignment plan. It eliminates the system’s three remaining K-8 schools and spreads the seventh and eighth graders out to nearby high schools.
It also creates a new International Baccalaureate Middle School, that will be located in the former Pleasant Grove Middle School building.
Craig Pouncey, the superintendent of Jefferson County Schools, says the new effort “will compliment our IB program we currently have in grades 9-12 at Shades Valley. It will be open to all students throughout the district. We will provide transportation through a hub design.”
More than 200 students will be accepted into the first classes for the IB middle school, the superintendent said. Those students will start school on Aug. 15, while all other Jefferson County students will start school on Aug. 11.
Here are the changes announced today:
Middle school grades will be eliminated at Brighton School. Students in grades seven and eight will go to Pleasant Grove High School or Hueytown High School. School officials say this change will give the students access to more academic and extra-curricular activities.
Bagley Jr. High School will be converted to Bagley Elementary School, serving students in kindergarten through fourth grade. Corner School will become a middle school for grades five through eight. Students from these schools will go on to attend Corner High School.
Students in grades seven and eight at Pleasant Grove Middle School will now attend Pleasant Grove High School, while the sixth graders will go to the Pleasant Grove Elementary.
Changes that may change demographics or opportunities for minority students must be approved due to an ongoing desegregation order.
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