PETITION TO THE HOPEWELL VALLEY REGIONAL SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD OF EDUCATION, SUPERINTENDENT DR. ROSETTA TREECE
Re: Redistricting Plan Affecting Bear Tavern Elementary School Families
We, the undersigned residents and families of the Hopewell Valley Regional School District, respectfully but urgently call on the District to reconsider the redistricting plan scheduled to take effect in the 2026-27 school year — specifically the provision that moves 34 currently enrolled Bear Tavern Elementary students out of their school and into Hopewell Elementary.
We are a community that puts our children first.
The families of this district have demonstrated that commitment in tangible ways. We choose to live in a high-tax community precisely because of the quality of education and the strength of the school communities our children are part of. We voted overwhelmingly in favor of the 2025 bond referendum — investing in our schools and welcoming growth — trusting that the District would manage that growth in a way that honored the children already here.
That trust has been broken by this plan.
The numbers don't add up — and the children are paying the price.
The District's own figures show that only 34 Bear Tavern students are being displaced — a number that will shrink further as exceptions are granted for fourth graders, students with IEPs, and siblings. Meanwhile, 22 students from Hopewell Parc are being moved into Bear Tavern. This is not meaningful enrollment balancing. It is a near-equal swap that causes significant disruption to a small number of children and families while producing no discernible benefit to the district as a whole.
What was never factored into this analysis is the wellbeing of the children involved. These are children who have built friendships, routines, and a sense of belonging at Bear Tavern. For many of them — including children managing anxiety, medical conditions, and other challenges — stability and familiarity are not preferences; they are necessities. Uprooting them from their school community is not a neutral administrative act. It causes real harm.
What we are asking for:
We call on the District to adopt a simple, fair, and workable alternative: all children who are already enrolled at Bear Tavern Elementary should be permitted to remain there. New students arriving in the district — including those from the new housing developments whose growth the District cites as the driver of this plan — should be assigned to schools under the new attendance zones. This approach achieves the District's stated goals without displacing a single child who is already part of an established school community.
We further call on the District to:
- Suspend implementation of the Bear Tavern displacement provision pending genuine community input
- Ensure that the May 6 public meeting is a true opportunity for families to be heard, not a formality
- Establish a transparent appeals process for affected families prior to any final decision
- Meaningfully engage with the school community — as partners, not as subjects of a unilateral administrative decision
The bottom line:
We did not vote for the referendum so that our children could be moved out of the schools they love. We voted to build a stronger district for everyone. A plan that disrupts the lives of dozens of children — without a meaningful enrollment justification and without any consideration of their emotional and developmental wellbeing — does not reflect the values of this community.
We ask the District to do what this community has always done: put the children first.
We, the undersigned, are families and residents of the Hopewell Valley Regional School District who support this petition.