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Class Caps Will Create Difficulties, Board Warns

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By MARILYN BROWN, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 12, 2007

Updated: 12/12/2007 12:13 am

TAMPA - Hillsborough County school officials want parents to know their children may soon be turned away as the state's class-size amendment hits its final stage requiring caps on individual class sizes.

If all classes are full in a school, students would be assigned a seat somewhere else - but it could be far from home or in a school different from siblings, officials said.

"Somebody's going to be affected in every part of the school district," Ken Otero, the district's chief of staff, told school board members during a workshop meeting Tuesday.

The warning is not new and the problem of what to do when every class in a school is full and another child enrolls is a concern for every school district in Florida.

"Do you put a 'closed' sign in front of the school?" Otero asked.

The district hopes parents will start considering those questions and put the heat on state legislators to come up with answers.

To that end, school board members agreed Tuesday to create a "Class Caps Community Task Force" to build awareness and support. It will include everyone from state legislators, city and county leaders, students, parents, teachers, developers and business people.

Florida's class-size amendment was approved by voters in 2002, but the state Legislature allowed it to be phased in until 2008-09 by passing a law that included using school averages for several years.

By next August, every prekindergarten through third grade public school classroom is limited to 18 students, grades four through eight may have no more than 22 in a class and high school core classes such as English and science may have no more than 25. Schools that don't comply risk having to divert operating money used for salaries and expenses to building more classrooms.

Questions such as how long a school should hold a seat for a registered child who doesn't show up or what to do if a high school student needs a class that is full are just two examples of the complex problems districts face.

Even more dramatic - what happens if a new kindergarten student arrives in March and there are no kindergarten openings at any nearby school? He or she could be assigned to another school hours before a spot opens at the first school.

What if there is no classroom space or room for a portable classroom to be added to the campus? Portable classrooms cost about $50,000 each to buy and another $20,000 to move and set up, said Cathy Valdes, the district's chief facilities officer.

School board members said they were troubled by the prospects. Member Susan Valdes said, "It troubles me when we say we're going to close the school" to potential students.

Reporter Marilyn Brown can be reached at (813) 259-8069 or mbrown@tampatrib.com.

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