MUSD Board Adopts Revised School Boundary Map

Parents, teachers and administrators turned out in large numbers for Tuesday's school board meeting. Menifee 24/7 photos: Doug Spoon

Taking into consideration the input of parents -- especially in the Oak Meadows Elementary School boundaries -- the Menifee Union School Board Tuesday approved a revised map of school boundaries for the next school year.

About 200 people attended the meeting, which was moved to Hans Christensen Middle School to accomodate the expected large turnout. The boundary changes, necessitated by population growth and the opening next fall of a new elementary school, were presented as two options in public meetings in recent weeks.

During those meetings, board members listened to the concerns of parents regarding the adjustment of the boundaries for Oak Meadows Elementary School, located in the southern part of the city. In both previously proposed map changes, an area that is home to 197 students in the northeast corner of the Oak Meadows boundary would've been sent to the new school, referred to now only as ES 10. That would've meant a commute of more than five miles rather than the mile or so most make now, said parents who spoke at Tuesday's meeting.

In response to the earlier complaints, a revised map B was drawn and presented along with map A Tuesday. In the revised map B, the following area was restored to the Oak Meadows Boundaries: Scott Road to the north, Keller Road to the south, Menifee Road to the West and Lindenberger Road to the east.

That was one of the few minor differences between maps A and B, which included a large area for the new ES 10 in an area of east Menifee that is now less populated than the others. After hearing testimony from parents on Tuesday re-emphasizing their concern, board members approved the revised map B.

"The response was overwhelming," district superintendent Steve Kennedy told the audience on Tuesday. "Those families wanted to stay at Oak Meadows. There will be a lot of development in the ES 10 area in the future, so we took that into consideration and we didn't want the Oak Meadows parents to be moved against their wishes."

The ES 10 boundaries are the largest, extending roughly from Old Newport Road on the north to as far south as Keller Road, and from Winchester Road on the east to Menifee Road on the west. The adjusted projected enrollment of that school is 364, although housing development is already increasing that number.

ES 10 is being built on Pat Road, just west of Pourroy Road and Winchester Road near the French Valley community (map at left).

On the west side of the freeway, the only real change involved a small neighborhood in the southeast corner of the Quail Valley Elementary boundaries that will be moved to the Herk Bouris Elementary area.

ES 10 will be a magnet school with a specialized STEM curriculum -- the only such school in the district, said Kennedy. Student transfers within the district will be allowed for parents wishing to send their children there. The district is also contracting for additional busing for those facing long distance travel within the district.

An electronic version of the revised boundary map should be available on the district's website sometime Wednesday, said district spokesperson Betti Cadmus. The document can be enlarged for easier viewing.

Construction continues at the site of ES 10, located on Pat Road west of Winchester Road.