Parents to Attend Hart School District Meeting

With West Ranch High School facing overcrowding issues and Castaic High School on hold for now, parents from Stevenson Ranch, Southern Oaks, Sunset Pointe and Castaic are concerned that their children will be shuffled around unnecessarily in order to reduce overcrowding.

Currently, children from Castaic and nearby Val Verde are being shuttled to West Ranch High while they await the construction of Castaic High School. This extra influx of students has impacted West Ranch High to the extent that the Hart School District needs to find ways to reduce the student population at West Ranch High.

None of the proposed options has been readily received so far. Castaic parents don't want their children moved to another school (again) and Stevenson Ranch area parents don't want their children to be sent to Hart High School or any other school in the district. Understandably, they want their children to be able to attend school close to home at West Ranch High as they have been for the last two years.

This high school situation has also created tension in the proposed marriage of the Castaic area and the Stevenson Area (or the West Side) into a newly formed city. Of course the formation of a new city has its drawbacks regardless of the high school battle, but added tensions between the two areas aren't helping the cityhood discussions.

The next Hart School District board meeting will be on February 21 at 7:30pm at the Hart District Administrative Center at 21515 Centre Pointe Parkway in Santa Clarita. I expect that this will be a standing room only meeting, so be prepared to arrive early!