Allen ISD approves rezoning plan over parent protests, board member resigns after contentious vote
ALLEN, Texas - The Allen ISD school board approved a controversial rezoning plan on Monday that affects thousands of elementary school students in the area.
The school board voted 6-1 to redraw school boundary lines in a night filled with drama.
The district says schools on the city's west side are overcrowded and wants to repurpose two schools with low enrollment numbers on Allen's east side.
Allen ISD parents protest attendance realignment of elementary schools
A majority of parents who spoke are from two neighborhoods because the plan would close Anderson and Roundtree Elementary, but the issue would affect students across the district as Allen ISD seeks to put all schools at 80% capacity.
"We hear you. We’ve read what you’ve sent us, but we do have a hope when this takes place, we will merge schools to feel as one," said board member Sam Ambiog.
The school board and superintendent defended the plan, even as some angry parents hurled questions at them while they were discussing the vote.
"We are not gaining students at a rate to recover the money that is eroding away, and we already have capacity issues in campuses across the district because we have 3,000 empty seats," said Board president Amy Gnadt.
The lone board member who voted against the plan, secretary Vatsa Ramanathan, said the district wasn't being transparent.
He claimed he was told not to talk to parents during the rezoning process.
"It is not only the vote, the whole process. There were people saying I was doing this to get votes from you all. I am not hungry from votes. I am not hungry for power. I just wanted to the right thing for the district," he said.
Ramanathan resigned immediately after the vote.
Hundreds of parents have attended public comment sessions to speak out publicly against the plans.
The rezoning plan goes into effect next school year.
The district says students in certain grades can request to stay at their current school, but that only applies to the school that won't close.