Woodland finds most parents live in district

To ensure tax dollars are spent to educate only children who belong in the school system, Woodland Elementary District 50 officials asked parents to prove their residency.

About 92 percent of parents who wanted their children to attend the Gurnee-based district's schools this year have the right to do so. School officials say they are waiting on about 50 families to prove they live in the district.

Paul Fegley, District 50's information systems manager, led the residency verification effort. Roughly 4,300 families proved they live within District 50's boundaries over five days last month.

"I think the event itself, for our first go-around, was very positive. I think you can use the word 'successful,'" Fegley said.

About 60 children who lived outside Woodland's boundaries cost the district nearly $579,000 -- based on $9,647 in per-pupil spending -- in the last academic year, officials said. The district has been making cuts and looking for new revenue sources to bolster its budget.

To weed out children who don't belong, District 50 requested parents bring two sources of documentation to prove residency. Utility bills, current home mortgage statements or coupons, driver's licenses, home insurance papers and state identification cards were among the accepted documentation.

Reasons vary on why children slip into the wrong public school districts. It can be anything from a parent's unhappiness with a particular district, to a desire for a child who moved in the middle of the year to finish at the same school, Woodland officials said.

Previously, Woodland had verified residency only at initial enrollment.

District 50 officials are discussing possible changes and enhancements for next year's event, having received feedback from parents.

Some parents who attended the afternoon session on the first day complained about a long wait time. Fegley said those problems weren't evident later in the week.

District 50 board President Bruce Bohren said residency verification was created after a recommendation from a financial review committee about two years ago.

"We are held accountable for all students we educate," Bohren said. "It is imperative that we, as a school district, follow all measures to ensure that students attending school here are in the correct school district."