AKRON, Ohio (WJW) — Pat Shipe, the president of Akron’s teachers’ union is among those trying to process the school district’s new redistricting plan.

“As we right-size the district there have been several buildings closed and a few more slated to be closed,” Shipe said.  “We have seen the need to move students around to balance out the district enrollment and to provide equity in instruction,” Shipe added.

The school board proposed new boundary lines for its six clusters, revealing a plan where every residential address in the city is assigned an elementary, middle, and high school.

Part of the need, board members were told earlier this year, is because of declining enrollment.

“In 2004 we had 37,000 students and now we have under 20,000 students,” Shipe said.

He pointed out that school enrollment is unbalanced at some school buildings like Harris Jackson, which is overcrowded, he said.

“Schools like Essex Elementary and Firestone Park are planned to close, so their students would be going to other buildings and there are many other moving parts affecting students, families, and employees,” according to Shipe.

“Any time you go into building closures where you are closing neighborhood schools there’s going to be students that have, and communities that have grown accustomed to their children walking to school but then perhaps bus further away from their neighborhood,” Shipe said.

The proposed changes would likely impact transportation but would give parents of students in new schools open enrollment opportunities.

“Akron Public Schools is a wonderful school system and we have our challenges just like any other school system public and private,” Shipe said. “We have seen lost enrollment and we are trying to balance that out…that is what this redistricting is going to do,” he said.