Our Focus on School District Planning

Our interest and experience in school district planning is based on our belief that a healthy school system is critical to both educating our youth and sustaining a vital community.

We draw on our unique blend of land use, economic and housing development, planning, forecasting, and public participation experience to assist a multitude of Wisconsin school districts in planning for their futures.  Our school district planning services and the districts we have served include:

• Strategic planning and community engagement initiatives.  Where: River Valley, Kaukauna, Sauk Prairie, Milton, Wausau
• Long-range facility plans, based on a unique understanding of both community and district trends and opportunities. Where: Waunakee, Oregon, Verona, Wausau
• Guiding selection of future school sites based on community planning, site analysis, and real estate experience.  Where: Waunakee, Verona, Oregon, Janesville
• Helping districts adjust school attendance area boundaries, establish walking/bussing zones, and reorganize bussing routes.  Where: Burlington, Verona, Middleton-Cross Plains, Waunakee, Sun Prairie, DeForest, Oregon, Wausau, Wauwatosa  
• Conducting housing development, demographic, and statistical analysis to help districts understand and predict change.  Where: Waukesha, Pewaukee, Sauk Prairie, St. Francis, Mayville, Stoughton
• Projecting future student enrollment by analyzing housing growth and demographic change, understanding municipal plans, and interacting with the board, staff, and developers.  Where: Baraboo, Cedarburg, Davenport (IA), DeForest, Franklin, Germantown, Glendale-River Hills, Greendale, Hortonville, Howard-Suamico, Janesville, Kaukauna, La Crosse, Lake Mills, Mequon-Thiensville, Middleton-Cross Plains, Mukwonago, Muskego-Norway, Oconomowoc, Oregon, Pulaski, Reedsburg, River Falls, Sheboygan Falls, Sun Prairie, Verona, Waterford, Watertown, Waukesha, Wausau, Wauwatosa, Waunakee, West Allis-West Milwaukee, West De Pere, Whitefish Bay, Winneconne, Wrightstown

We are skilled in a variety of mapping and analysis techniques and tools in order to:

• Sub-divide school districts into smaller neighborhoods—based on areas of common traits—to allow fine-grained analysis and options.
• Illustrate enrollment projections by neighborhood and attendance area, visually sharing that information and allowing clear analysis of different school facility options.
• Facilitate committee and public meetings through with mapping, allowing review of the impacts of different policy choices.
• Evaluate potential school sites using a wide range of social and physical characteristics (e.g., site size, development potential, neighborhood characteristics, access).

Finally, it is noteworthy that, while we understand school facility and related programming needs, we do not design or build school facilities as any part of our practice.  We, therefore, have no particular interest in whether or when school facilities are built or expanded.  This assures our objectivity, and helps avoid real or perceived conflicts of interest that might otherwise impair successful completion of school facility planning projects.