Central Bucks School Board Approves Grade Re-Alignment Plan

DOYLESTOWN, PA ? The Central Bucks School Board on Tuesday approved a plan that will reconfigure the district's grade levels and launch full-day kindergarten beginning with the 2026-27 school year.

A committee of staff, parents, and students has been exploring the idea since it was first announced in April 2023. The plan includes the implementation of full-day kindergarten and moving to a more traditional grade-level configuration - K to 5 (elementary school), 6 to 8 (middle school), and 9 to 12 (high school). Currently, the schools are K-6, 7-9, and 10-12.

?These changes will have wide-reaching and impactful benefits for our students,? said school board president Karen Smith. ?Students will get off to a better start during the early years in kindergarten, sixth-grade students are ready for a middle school experience to help navigate adolescence, and our 9th-grade students will have greater access to programs in the high school.?

In addition to changing the grade level configurations and adding full-day kindergarten at all elementary schools, the board approved a pilot program for full-day kindergarten to operate during the 2025-26 school year. The location for those pilot classes will be determined by Nov. 1, 2024.

?A pilot kindergarten program will give us the opportunity to work with our teachers and curriculum department as we continue to refine our plan and make adjustments for it to expand across the district,? said Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education Dr. Nadine Garvin.

The plan includes a $12 million one-time cost in renovations at the three high schools to prepare space for the ninth grade and $9.9 million in ongoing operating costs for staffing and supplies. Those costs will be phased in over three budget years and will add an estimated $7 each month to the average district taxpayer?s bill over the next five years, according to the district officials.

The reconfiguration plan impacts all 23 Central Bucks schools.

District officials said the plan will not require a re-districting of attendance boundaries. Enrollment is projected to remain stable during the next 10 years. Current enrollment is 17,195, down from 20,456 in the 2009-10 school year. The enrollment projection for the 2033-34 year is 17,168 students.

The school board considered implementing the plan in fall, 2025 but due to the magnitude of changes, and a change in superintendents in November, the administration recommended an additional planning year to accomplish all the tasks necessary.

For additional information, visit the district?s realignment page by clicking here.