Liberty exceeds maximum capacity
Permission to print from OLSD.
There is one main problem dwelling at Olentangy Liberty High School (OLHS) which the students and administrators must cope with: overpopulation.
This issue was magnified when the incoming sophomores and juniors got the opportunity to stay at their school, OLHS. Seniors across the Olentangy Local School District(OLSD) stayed at their school. On the other hand, OHS students did not get this alternative. According to OLSD Superintendent Mark Raiff, if they were redistricted, they were forced to go to Olentangy Berlin High School (OBHS), which opened the fall of 2018. This caused Liberty to remain overpopulated, because most students who had the choice, chose the school they already called home..
“We have always let seniors stay at their current school, which is the right decision. The decision to allow juniors to stay at OLHS was new, and I do not regret it because I thought giving them a choice was in their best interest. Sophomores moved schools unless they were approved for a transfer. At OLHS, there were 43 students that stayed as a sophomores,” Raiff said, via email.
Students attending Liberty agree the hallways and classroom are overflowing and more congested this year than in years past.
“The lockers and hallways are more crowded at OLHS than last year,” Daniel B. ‘21 said, who decided to stay at OLHS as a sophomore.
Redistricting students and families is not an easy job for the superintendent of the district to do, according to Raiff.
“Redistricting is always a very hard process for some students and families, and I can appreciate that they all love and enjoy the school they are currently attending,” Raiff said.
Many students at OLHS did not consider going to a new school due to the strong relationships they had formed with teachers and other students. Leaving would have split them from their friends, teammates, club members and others they had grown close to.
“I did not heavily consider going to OHS, because all of my friends go to school at OLHS. I have good relationships with my teachers and friends at OLHS, and all three of my siblings went to OLHS,” Marcus M. ‘20 said.
Sophomore Daniel K. decided to make the switch to OHS, and he believes he made the right decision. He said he does not regret it, as he enjoys OHS more than he did OLHS during his freshman year.
“The people at Olentangy are much nicer and more genuine people compared to those at Liberty. I felt a fresh start would be a better option for me, due to not liking Liberty as a school. The biggest difference between the two schools would have to be the attitudes of the people and teachers,” Daniel K. said.
Lauren Hughes • Dec 11, 2019 at 2:12 pm
I think that all students, excluding seniors, in OLSD should not have gotten the choice stay at their original school.
Parker Lawrence • Dec 11, 2019 at 2:10 pm
This is a good article to read, especially for me because I was part of the redistricting process. It is good to hear both sides of the story, some students from OHS and some from OLHS. The quotes were a way to give insight. The writer did a great job in following the inverted pyramid.
caitlin kravitz • Dec 11, 2019 at 2:10 pm
Although I believe that there is unfair bias amongst the Olentangy school district. I don’t think that making a switch from OLHS to OHS is going to effect your academics as much as your social life.
Malea W • Dec 11, 2019 at 2:06 pm
I liked how it gave a lot of information on the situation at liberty. The quotes also added good detail to the story, There was good sources with the quotes too. It also follows the pyramid structure well
Elizabeth bell • Dec 11, 2019 at 1:21 pm
I loved reading this story. I already knew Liberty was over crowned but I didn’t think it was that over crowned. I also didn’t know that 43 sophomores stayed at Liberty. That’s crazy!
Elena Robinson • Dec 11, 2019 at 1:19 pm
I like how you got different points fo view from different sources. I think that many people would be interested in this because lots of students are not happy in their current school and would be interested in knowing how other people view olentangy in comparison to liberty.
giana volpe • Dec 11, 2019 at 1:19 pm
This article was interesting to me because as a student of OHS I was curious wha other schools were like. It again gives a different viewpoint of another school in the district. I like how you used sophomores from the school that had more of an option to switch, and what they thought about there second year at their original school or if maybe they regret staying.
Bailey • Dec 11, 2019 at 1:10 pm
I like how the article incorporated the facts of how redistricting went and how they interviewed students that had opinions of each side.
Ellie Nicoloulias • Nov 6, 2018 at 6:59 pm
I was interested in what the article was about because I went to Liberty last year and and am one of the transfers to OHS. I liked the quotes from the students still at liberty and how it changed compared to last year.
I learned that Liberty only had 43 students stay as sophomores i thought it was more than that
This has proximity to me since I live around the corner from Liberty and attended it last year.
maleah • Nov 5, 2018 at 12:15 pm
1.) I like how they incorporated multiple quotes from people who attend(ed) Liberty to produce the most accurate information possible.
2.) I learned that the Olentangy redistricting process is very messy, confusing, and sometimes unfair. I think that the students should have more of a choice when i comes to these kind of decisions.
3.) This article contains human interest because Liberty is in our district and we have students from Liberty that go to our school.
Jim Otis • Sep 29, 2018 at 10:19 pm
This is a joke. LIBERTY has recruited, cheated and has been given unfair advantage for years. No other school in the district had these rules. It’s a joke