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By Brian Hews
Publisher | Follow X
November 4, 2025
November 4, 2025
The ABC Unified School District is moving ahead with the next phase of its school consolidation and reconfiguration plan, likely voting at tonight’s November 4 meeting to accept new attendance boundaries drawn by consultant MGT Impact Solutions. The updated boundaries, part of a multi-year reorganization effort, will take effect beginning in the 2026-27 school year and represent one of the most significant shifts in ABCUSD’s elementary map in decades.
The move follows the Board’s September 16 approval of a district-wide consolidation plan and the subsequent October 7 contract with MGT to analyze and redraw attendance zones. The Board directed staff to plan and prepare for the consolidation of Aloha and Juarez Elementary Schools for 2026-27 and Furgeson and Stowers Elementary Schools for 2027-28. The plan also includes transitioning sixth-grade students to the district’s middle schools, including Whitney High School, by 2027-28, shifting elementary grades to a TK-5 configuration district-wide.
Using 2025-26 student residence data geocoded through MGT’s SchoolSite Pro software, the firm applied criteria to balance enrollment, keep neighborhood zones compact, and minimize disruption. Each home was reassigned to its closest school, with an emphasis on avoiding multiple moves for the same student and containing adjustments to the immediate areas affected by consolidation.
MGT’s analysis was presented to the Board in a professional-development session that outlined how consolidation will unfold in two phases: Phase 1, the merger of Aloha and Juarez Elementary Schools in 2026-27, and Phase 2, the merger of Furgeson and Stowers Elementary Schools in 2027-28.
The first phase focuses on students currently attending Aloha Elementary School. According to the report, 402 resident students live in Aloha’s current attendance area. After the school’s closure, approximately 200 students will remain within what becomes the new Aloha zone but will attend nearby campuses instead.
Current map and Phase 1 map
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The new student distribution is as follows: 51 students will move to Melbourne Elementary School, 49 to Palms Elementary School, and 100 to Willow Elementary School. Once reassigned, projected enrollments will balance across these sites, with Melbourne reaching 521 students, Palms 618, and Willow 596.
A similar redistribution will occur for Juarez Elementary School, which currently serves 408 resident students. The modeling shows that only 164 students from Juarez’s existing boundary will attend nearby schools beginning in 2026-27. Of those, four students will attend Burbank Elementary, 126 will go to Kennedy Elementary, and 34 will attend Wittmann Elementary. Resulting total enrollments will rise to 536 at Burbank, 585 at Kennedy, 579 at Niemes, and 323 at Wittmann.
The district emphasized that assignments were determined by residence proximity and the need to equalize school capacities. MGT also avoided sending families to non-contiguous attendance zones, one of the top planning priorities established by the Board.
While the official staff report lists no fiscal impact for this boundary action, the effects for families will be substantial. Hundreds of students will be reassigned to new campuses in the next 18 months, prompting transportation and school-choice adjustments before registration opens for 2026-27.
District officials said the reconfiguration is designed to modernize operations, address uneven enrollment, and prepare for future facility upgrades. The Board is expected to take up Phase 2 boundary adjustments for the Furgeson-Stowers merger next year, using the same geocoding process once the current year’s enrollment is finalized.
Superintendent Dr. Gina Zietlow and Deputy Superintendent and Chief Financial Officer Toan Nguyen led the staff recommendation, noting that the changes balance student counts across schools and ensure that programs, teachers, and staff can transition efficiently. The Board unanimously voted to accept the MGT report and adopt the new boundaries.
The district will begin outreach to affected families this winter, with community meetings expected early next year. Under the approved timeline, all consolidation work for Aloha and Juarez will be complete before the start of the 2026-27 school year.
Where Aloha and Juarez Students Will Go
Aloha students will move to Melbourne, Palms, and Willow elementary schools.
Juarez students will move to Burbank, Kennedy, and Wittmann elementary schools.
Both Aloha and Juarez campuses will close after the 2025-26 school year, with full consolidation taking effect in 2026-27.
