Dear Sioux Falls School District Community,

We have completed the Boundary Task Force Phase of the re-districting process. We are so thankful for
the dedication of the 33-person boundary task force who represented a cross section of neighborhoods
and demographics in Sioux Falls.
Over the course of three meetings the Boundary Task Force collaborated with District Staff to arrive at
both the Middle School and High School options to accommodate the opening of Thomas Jefferson High
School and Ben Reifel Middle School in the Fall of 2021.
Their feedback was invaluable in helping us shape options to be brought forward to the community for
further feedback. The options being brought forward for community input are options that meet desired
enrollment levels across our Middle and High Schools while fulfilling other guidelines as outlined by the
School Board.
Input will continue to be gathered from the community engagement sessions, as well as from our Let’s
Talk! on-line tool. The feedback will be captured and presented to the School Board at their Work
Session scheduled for April 8th, at 5pm.
From that point, the School Board will study all the information over the course of the next several
months. The final decision on Middle School and High School boundaries would be voted on by the
School Bord at the June 22nd, 2020 regular meeting.
We have five scheduled community engagement sessions as follows:
Thursday, March 12 at 5:30 to 6:30 at Memorial Middle School
Monday, March 16 at 5:30 to 6:30 at Patrick Henry Middle School
Thursday, March 26 at 5:30 to 6:30 at Whittier Middle School
Tuesday, April 7 at 5:30 to 6:30 at McGovern Middle School
Thursday, April 9 at 5:30 to 6:30 at Edison Middle School
*It is anticipated that we will be adding a Saturday session to accommodate those who are unable to attend
on a weeknight.

 Middle School Option A:

Middle School Option B:

Middle School Option Highlights:
A pressure point in the District is currently the high student enrollment at Memorial Middle School.
Current enrollment is 1,369, and projected enrollment in the Fall of 2021 is 1,435. The desired
goal is 1,000-1,100 students per Middle School.
Option A reduces the enrollment at Memorial MS by moving the current JFK Elementary (286) area
to Edison Middle School.
Option B reduces the enrollment at Memorial MS by moving a portion of current Oscar Howe
Elementary (136) area to McGovern. It also, designates the area West of Tea-Ellis Road (85) to
attend McGovern.
Specialty Schools:
Option A: Spanish Immersion to Edison and Honors to Patrick Henry
Option B: Spanish Immersion and Honors to remain at Edison
The City of Sioux Falls has projected housing unit growth in the Ben Reifel and McGovern
attendance areas of 23% and 40% respectively over the next 5-20 years.

Post Specialty School
Allocation
Current Enrollment
Option A (Honors to PH,
Spanish Immersion to Edison
Option B (Honors and Spanish
Immersion to remain at Edison)

Ben Reifel MS

Edison MS

George
McGovern
MS

-

1,127

900

1,369

1,107

981

899

1,088

758

1,089

1,026

847

899

1,114

795

1,144

907

847

Memorial
MS

Patrick
Henry MS

Whittier
MS

 High School Option A:

High School Option C:

High School Option Highlights:
High School Option A: This option corresponds to Middle School Option A in attempt to keep Middle
School cohorts feeding single High Schools to the extent possible. Ben Reifel to WHS, Patrick Henry to
LHS, Edison to RHS, McGovern to JHS, Whittier split between LHS and WHS, and Memorial split between
RHS and JHS.
High School Option B: The boundary task force felt that Option B was very similar to Option A and this
option has been eliminated for consideration.
High School Option C: Based upon feedback from the boundary task force, Option A and B as presented
were too similar. The District staff compiled an Option C based upon input from task force members.
Highlights, in general, are:
• Using 26th St. as a boundary line for RHS between Tea-Ellis Road and I-229
• Using Western Ave as the boundary line between LHS and RHS.
• Moving the area north of 6th St. that was formerly LHS to JHS
Base (Headcount)
Current Enrollment
Option A
Option C

Jefferson HS New Technology Lincoln HS Roosevelt HS Washington HS
301
2,053
2,462
1,968
1,452
301
1,626
2,032
1,939
1,516
301
1,805
1,789
1,939

New Tech High School will be part of the Thomas Jefferson High School Campus in all options.

 Link to Interactive Map of each Middle School and High School Options:
https://495.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=f9d286b8327f4299b12825a5a06317b
7
Link to workbook with visuals, enrollment numbers, and analysis.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Bk6HR1iBjW7iZr3LahKF6YuuOKGlSjuk