A plan to increase Anne Arundel?s public school capacity will make for more “realistic” classroom sizes and make it easier for people to build homes.
The proposal would increase the capacity rating to 105 percent for elementary schools and 110 percent for middle and high schools.
“People will see 105 and 110 percent and believe that we?re overcrowding schools ? but even at those percentages, we?re not,” said Councilman Jamie Benoit, D-District 4, who, along with District 3 Councilman Ron Dillon, is proposing the changes.
The state Board of Education uses a reduction multiplier to create a cushion between the capacity rating and the actual seat count.
A 500-seat elementary school, using the state-mandated 85 percent multiplier, is at 100 percent capacity when 425 seats are filled. Even at the proposed 105 percent capacity, there are still 53 empty seats.
However, Anne Arundel is using a higher multiplier than what the board approved in 2001, meaning schools allow more students in before reaching capacity limits. Benoit and Dillon want to use the lower state percentage.
The proposal will likely add more students in some schools, particularly those where development is being considered.
Other counties allow for higher capacity ratings before closing a school to new students. Howard County considers a school being full at 115 percent capacity.
According to the councilmen, the new proposal would:
* Leave 8,000 empty seats countywide.
* Close five elementary schools that are currently open to new students.
* Open three high schools to new student but still remain under capacity.
“In three to five years, I see little impact on class room size other than closing schools that should be closed,” Dillon said.
The proposal comes as the county school system plans to cut 200 teacher positions.
The councilmen?s efforts come after the council took control of the school capacity chart, a listing of which schools are overcrowded and no longer open to new students.
The chart has been the bane of many home builders in the county. If a school system is deemed “closed” to new students, a developer would wait at least six years before building new homes. But several schools are on the chart can handle more students, officials said.
The proposal would reduce that time to three years, saving home builders money spent on interest on undeveloped property, and ultimately reducing housing prices, Benoit said.
Benoit also said he would propose amending the impact fee bill, which would raise the cost of developers building in the county, by placing an additional charge on developers building near schools that are over 100 percent capacity.
