Baltimore County Public Schools is gearing up for redistricting once again. But this time, only one student would change schools.

This marks the most expansive use of a shortcut to redraw school boundaries since it was created last year. Instead of forming a committee of parents, teachers and principals to make new maps, central office staff will send their recommendations right to the school board for approval.

At issue are four areas in the county’s central region that involve 11 schools. Some small fixes could save the school system headaches in the future, according to school officials.

It’s an “effort to clean up a few issues that we’ve identified over time,” said Jess Grim, the district’s chief operating officer, at a school board meeting on Tuesday.

Here’s what to know:

Where will the new boundaries be?

The four areas affected:

• Falls Road near Fifth District Elementary, Hereford Middle and Hereford High.
• Blenheim Road near Carroll Manor Elementary and Jacksonville Elementary.
• Putty Hill Avenue near Oakleigh Elementary and Villa Cresta Elementary.
• Loch Raven Boulevard near Hampton Elementary, Pine Grove Elementary, Pine Grove Middle and Ridgely Middle.

What’s different about this round of redistricting?

When a boundary needs changing, the school district usually assigns the task to a committee of community members, most of whom are parents. They spend months in a series of two-hour meetings on school nights to come up with a solution. It’s a long, often-fraught and emotional process to decide which children have to change schools to relieve overcrowding.

But around this time last year, the school district introduced a new redistricting process called administrative review.

The school system’s Office of Strategic Planning can draft a boundary change for the superintendent to consider. The public will still have a chance to view the draft and give input through public information sessions, a survey, and a public hearing held by the school board. The board still has final approval over the new map.

The administrative review is only used if a small number of students or schools are involved. While this boundary study involves 11 schools, only one current student will be impacted.

What are the problems with the current boundaries in these areas?

Falls Road: Boundaries for Fifth District Elementary, Herford Middle and Hereford High include a parcel that technically does not belong to Baltimore County.

“This parcel was thought to be part of a larger parcel within Baltimore County; however, after research, this parcel is entirely within Carroll County and is not eligible to attend Baltimore County Public Schools,” a report states.

Grim said the parcel could confuse Carroll residents who may think their kids can attend a Baltimore County school.

Blenheim Road: Grim said there are three homes on Blenheim Road that are zoned for Carroll Manor Elementary, but bus drivers use that road to take students to Jacksonville Elementary.

The district proposed making Blenheim Road part of the Jacksonville attendance zone to make transportation more efficient. Only one student would have to transfer schools because of it.

Putty Hill Avenue: District officials noticed that two parcels of land — home to only a church and fire and police stations — are both divided by Putty Hill Avenue. Oakleigh Elementary is on one side; Villa Cresta Elementary is on the other. However, Oakleigh’s attendance zone stretches to the opposite side of Putty Hill, which is closer to Villa Cresta.

The school system wants to give some of that attendance zone to Villa Cresta. The county isn’t anticipating a housing development in that area any time soon but said restructuring the boundaries would be helpful for potential future residents.

Loch Raven Boulevard: This portion of Loch Raven Boulevard is zoned for Pine Grove Elementary and Middle schools. It’s undeveloped, Grim said, and adjacent to Interstate 695. The Pine Grove schools are on the other side of the beltway, which “doesn’t make a whole lot of sense,” said Grim.

The district wants to add that portion to Hampton Elementary’s and Ridgely Middle’s attendance zones. It would better align the boundaries, the report stated.

What are the next steps?

The public will get to share feedback on the proposed changes on Jan. 28 at George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology.

The board will vote on the maps April 21.

About the Education Hub

This reporting is part of The Banner’s Education Hub, community-funded journalism that provides parents with resources they need to make decisions about how their children learn. Read more.