Phasing Out of 6th - 8th Grades at Springville and Raleigh Hills

Dear Springville and Raleigh Hills Families,

The District has been evaluating the best way to provide a common middle school experience for all of our students. With this in mind, the District will transition Springville and Raleigh Hills from a K-8 model to a K-5 model.

We recognize that many families are deeply attached to the K-8 model and will need some time to process this information. We understand that this decision will affect many families and we are developing plans for the transition to support our families and our students.

In making this decision, we took into account the history of our K-8 program, research on the K-8 model, staffing, facilities and budget. For example, at Springville, we are out of classroom space. But the most important factor is the ability to provide the best comprehensive education for our middle school students.

K-8 schools are currently staffed and supervised in the elementary school model, meaning the curricular programs are based on elementary core requirements, rather than middle school requirements. The District is working on a common comprehensive middle school experience, which would include more consistent course offerings for students in 2020-21. Comprehensive middle schools also offer more counseling services and support for transition to high school and post-secondary success. This level of support is something that we cannot provide in the K-8 model due to staffing and budget. In addition, the ability to schedule special education and English language learner services is more complex at K-8 schools with nine grade levels, as opposed to three grade levels at middle schools.

Timeline and Transition

This year, the options application window opens on October 14 and closes on December 6. During that period, we will be accepting applications for students to attend 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th grades at Springville and Raleigh Hills for the 2020-21 school year.

In 2020-21, we will only be accepting applications for 7^th and 8^th grades to attend Springville and Raleigh Hills during the 2021-22 school year. This means there will be no 6^th grades at Springville and Raleigh Hills in 2021-22.

In 2021-22, we will only be accepting applications for 8^th grade to attend Springville and Raleigh Hills during the 2022-23 school year. This means there will be no 6^th or 7^th grades in 2022-23.

Springville and Raleigh Hills will complete the transition and open the 2023-24 school year as K-5 schools.

• Application Year: 2019-20 · Grades Applying: 6^th, 7^th, 8th · Attendance Year: 2020-21
• Application Year: 2020-21 · Grades Applying: 7^th, 8th · Attendance Year: 2021-22
• Application Year: 2021-22 · Grades Applying: 8th · Attendance Year: 2022-23
• Application Year: 2022-23 · Grades Applying: No applications accepted · Attendance Year: 2023-24

This will leave one K-8 school in the Beaverton School District, Aloha-Huber Park (AHP) K-8, which is currently a dual-language program and does not accept applications from students outside the AHP boundary. AHP will remain as a K-8 while the District evaluates options for ensuring those students will be able to continue their dual-language pathway into middle school.

We understand that you will have questions about this decision and transition. We want to make it clear that this decision is part of a larger, district-wide picture regarding comprehensive middle schools. We encourage you to reach out to your current K-8 principals. We have also established a webpage on the Springville and Raleigh Hills websites with this letter and an FAQ.

Thank you for your understanding and support.

Ginny Hansmann, Deputy Superintendent for Teaching & Learning
Jennifer DeMartino, Principal, Raleigh Hills K-8
Robin Kobrowski, Principal, Springville K-8