ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, January 31, 1997 TAG: 9701310060
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
Even if parents outside Roanoke County are willing to pay the $500 tuition fee, many will find they can't enroll their children in the county's schools beginning next year.
In an effort to reduce class size in the early grades and overcrowding in the upper grades, the county will sharply restrict the number of new students from surrounding localities.
No longer will the county admit nonresident children in kindergarten or first grade at any school unless their parents are employees of Roanoke County or they already have an older sibling in county schools.
Even in these cases, out-of-county children will be accepted only if space is available in the particular class to which they would be assigned, said Superintendent Deanna Gordon.
"If we are serious about reducing class size in the early grades, it doesn't make sense to fill up classes with nonresidents, even if we have the space," Gordon said.
The restriction won't apply to the more than 700 nonresident children already enrolled. They will be allowed to finish their education in county schools.
The county's enrollment is about 13,850.
The county also will restrict new nonresident students in all grades in Vinton and Southwest County because of overcrowding in middle and high schools.
The overcrowding is worst at Cave Spring Junior High, where enrollment is about 925 - nearly 150 over the school's capacity.
"Even though we may have space for more children in elementary schools in these areas, all of the students converge at the middle and high schools, where we have overcrowding," Gordon said.
She said the residents' committee that is studying school building needs has "given signals" that the enrollment of nonresident students should be limited.
With the new restrictions, the nonresident enrollment gradually will be reduced over several years as students graduate.
The School Board concurred with Gordon's recommendation to begin limiting the enrollment of students from outside the county.
Last summer, the board imposed a $500 tuition fee for all new nonresidents because of complaints by some residents that it was unfair for nonresidents to attend county schools without paying real estate and personal property taxes in the county.
Chairman Michael Stovall, who pushed for the tuition, said parents from some nearby localities were getting a bargain in education because their taxes were cheaper than those in Roanoke County.
Despite the $500 tuition, county schools have retained their attractiveness to students from nearby localities.
The parents of about 90 students from Roanoke, Bedford County and several other surrounding jurisdictions agreed to pay the $500 tuition for Roanoke County schools this year.
The tuition applied to all students entering county schools for the first time this year, but not to nonresidents who were in school last year.
About 700 returning nonresidents were allowed to remain in county schools by paying the $100 annual registration fee that had been in effect for many years.
Nearly 150 nonresidents applied for admission to county schools this year, but only about 90 could be admitted, mainly because of lack of space.
When the board approved the $500 tuition, some members worried that it could cause the county to lose a substantial amount of state aid if there was a significant decrease in nonresidents.
The county receives $2,500 in state money for each student, regardless of whether the student lives within the county. School officials said they come out ahead because they receive more in state aid than it costs to accommodate the additional students.
At some schools in the Vinton District, nearly 10 percent of the students come from outside the county.
Salem has a $100 registration fee for students from outside its boundaries, but neither Roanoke nor Salem charges tuition for nonresidents.
LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: STEPHANIE KLEIN-DAVIS STAFF Cave Spring Junior Highby CNBSchool students jam the hallways at a change of classes Thursday
afternoon.