Hundreds view Davis schools plan

LAYTON — Hundreds of Davis County residents gathered at Layton High's auditorium Tuesday to view the district's newest boundary realignment proposal.

Some were pleased with the outcome, seeing that their students' futures had been left alone. Others were discouraged, saying the district followed its own agenda in accomplishing a task that encompasses more than 60,000 students.

"There are no magic bullets," said former Davis superintendent Darrell White, who was charged with developing a new proposal after court action barred a previous committee from further involvement. "Anytime you change boundaries you change people's lives."

White said he received hundreds of e-mails and other comments, all of which he read and responded to, but could not possibly incorporate every recommendation into the proposal. From the input, however, he noted major issues, including overcrowding at schools and giving students a choice, among others.

"We moved into this area so that our kids could go to Davis (High), we hand-picked it because it's the best," said Todd Waltz, who is also a baseball coach at Woods Cross High. He and his wife, Francene, plan to sell their home if the new boundary affects their choice.

Gaynell Parker wants her children to continue the tradition of their siblings, who all graduated from Davis High. Their Mutton Hollow neighborhood is designated to attend Layton High under the new plan.

Lyndsi Lytle, a senior at Layton High, said the changes will have an effect on students, but that most of them will stay in the same group of friendships.

"They better watch it at football games," she said. "The rivalries are already there and it's going to take awhile for students to feel comfortable at a new school."

This was the second proposal laid out for Davis County residents in three months. It aims to redraw the boundaries for Davis' seven high schools while making room for a new eighth high school slated to open next fall in Syracuse.

It has been a hot issue for many residents in the county since there will be students at each school in the district who will be uprooted.

Unlike the former proposal, the new plan was not presented in public hearings but went directly to the Davis Board of Education for preliminary approval.

"We have to remind them that these schools belong to the parents," said Randy Smith, a north Farmington resident and spokesman for the Davis Parents Association.