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Duval County School Board Votes On School Zone Changes Tonight

Duval County School Board

The Duval County School Board is set to vote tonight on a set of zoning changes and magnet school designations sought by Superintendent Nikolai Vitti. Current students at the affected schools will get priority when applying for the new magnet programs.

The Duval School Board will vote tonight whether to approve the changes sought by Superintendent Nikolai Vitti. If the board agrees, Stilwell Middle School will become a military leadership magnet school, allowing students from all over the city to enter a lottery to attend. Students currently zoned for Stilwell would be rezoned for Jeff Davis Middle.

Butler Middle would be split into two single-gender magnets. Kids currently zoned for Butler would go to Ribault, Highlands or Northwestern.

Justina Road Elementary would become GRASP Academy, with currently zoned students redirected to a handful of other schools.

Two school boundary changes meant to relieve overcrowding are also before the board. Some Seabreeze Elementary students would go to Alimicani, and students moving into a new housing development near Sandalwood High will be rezoned for Atlantic Coast. 

Tonight’s meeting is at 6 p.m. in the School Board building. 

Jessica Palombo supervises local news gathering and production, podcasts and web editorial content for WJCT News, ADAPT and Jacksonville Today. She is an award-winning writer and journalist with bylines including NPR, Experience Magazine, and The Gainesville Sun. She has a master’s degree in broadcast and digital journalism from Syracuse University and is an alumna of the University of Florida. A nearly lifelong resident of Jacksonville, she considers herself lucky to be raising her own children in her hometown. Follow Jessica Palombo on Twitter: @JaxJessicaP