Indian Bridge Road Residents Urge School Board To Reverse Proposed High School Rezoning

LEONARDTOWN, Md. — Residents from the Indian Bridge Road corridor in California gathered at the St. Mary’s County Board of Education public hearing on Feb. 18, urging board members to reconsider a proposed high school redistricting plan that would zone their neighborhood from Leonardtown High School to Great Mills High School beginning in the 2026-27 school year.

The public hearing followed the superintendent’s Feb. 3 recommendation to phase in high school boundary changes beginning with current eighth graders, while taking no immediate action at the elementary or middle school levels as enrollment is monitored.

Under the proposal, the Indian Bridge Road area, including Elizabeth Hills, would shift from Leonardtown High School to Great Mills High School.

Residents described the proposed change as disruptive, particularly for rising ninth graders.

“We Purposely Chose Our Home”

Kimberly Nosek, a resident from the Indian Bridge Road corridor and longtime educator, told the board that the decision would affect her children across multiple grade levels.

“We purposely chose our home,” Nosek said. “I did so much research. I even subbed at all the different schools. I don’t take this lightly at all.”

Nosek said her family would move from “one of the higher performing schools, to the lowest performing schools,” and raised concerns about transportation and capacity at Great Mills High School.

Mental Health And Social Impact

Mike Chanda told the board that rising ninth graders from the Indian Bridge Road area would face additional stress if separated from classmates.

“Whether the superintendent or the Board of Education want to address it or not, there’s mental health challenges, especially for rising ninth grade students at Indian Bridge, associated with this redistricting,” Chanda said.

Ryan Mullins, of Elizabeth Hills, said his neighborhood would be rezoned “from the best performing high school to the lowest.”

“If all those rezonings were to happen to a single neighborhood, that would be unconscionable,” Mullins said.

Several parents said their children had already formed relationships with teachers and peers at Leonardtown High School and its feeder schools.

Abigail, a senior at Leonardtown High School who lives in the Indian Bridge Road area, spoke about her experiences and how her siblings would not have the same programs available as she did.

“My experience at Leonardtown has been memorable,” Abigail said. “I’m extremely grateful for the time I spent at Leonardtown, but I don’t want it to be an experience only I get to have.”

Abigail noted that Chinese language courses are not offered at Great Mills High School or Chopticon High School.

“My sister Hannah is currently at the Chinese program at Leonardtown Middle School, and she wants to continue throughout high school,” Abigail said. “The issue with her going to Great Mills is that they don’t offer Chinese.”

Global And International Studies

Jerry Gabriel questioned whether specialized academic programs would remain consistent if redistributed across schools.

“Will the same classes be guaranteed regardless of enrollment?” Gabriel asked. “Will an equal amount of AP credit be offered?”

Gabriel also asked what assurances families would have that the GIS program at Chopticon High School and Great Mills High School would be “as rigorous as the program at Leonardtown has been historically.”

Another resident said he has children across elementary, middle and high school levels, and raised similar concerns about course continuity, particularly for students in the Chinese language pathway.

Property Value Concerns

Some residents said they purchased homes specifically for Leonardtown High School zoning and expressed concerns that rezoning could affect their property values.

Mullins claimed his neighborhood in Elizabeth Hills would lose “approximately $30 million in home value,” citing his comparisons to nearby communities.

Another resident, Alyssa Holston, said her research suggested school boundary changes can result in measurable home value declines and an estimated “7% reduction” in affected neighborhoods.

Tony Combs, an Indian Bridge Road corridor resident, said that he believed rezoning could affect home values, and that he and other families moved into the area with school districting in mind.

Combs said, “From a financial perspective, there’s definitely a big blow for my family.”

Combs also raised concerns about increased travel time if students attend Leonardtown Middle School but are rezoned to Great Mills High School.

“Now we have a longer duration of a bus ride,” Combs said. “Which also impacts time for schoolwork at home, or extracurricular activities.”

The Survey Process And Transparency

Karen Anderson told the board she opposed expanding the rezoning to include the remainder of Indian Bridge Road, arguing the change was not part of the three options presented during earlier community engagement with CannonDesign.

“The most important point here is that this change is the only one that does not appear in any of the three options vetted by the community this fall,” Anderson said. “Adding the remainder of Indian Bridge Road was never presented as a possibility.”

Anderson said families participated in months of meetings and surveys believing those options reflected what would ultimately be considered.

“To choose to single out a small number of rural families at the last moment is a contradiction of the thoughtful, ethical community process we have supported in good faith,” Anderson said.

Capacity and Development

Jennifer Vallandingham questioned whether it made sense to move students to Great Mills High School given projected residential development in the Lexington Park area.

“Is it even worth impacting the lives of those students just to move them from one overutilized school to another one?” Vallandingham asked. “Why move any kids to Great Mills at all?”

Some residents referenced previously approved housing developments, including Stewart’s Grant and Pembrooke Crossing, and cited concerns about potential impacts on Great Mills enrollment.

Hollywood Elementary Divided

Deborah Norris, a Hollywood resident and retired social studies teacher who said she has spent more than 40 years in St. Mary’s County Public Schools, raised a separate concern about feeder alignment at Hollywood Elementary School.

“Hollywood is going to three different high schools,” Norris said.

Norris said students from the same elementary school could be split among Chopticon, Leonardtown and Great Mills, depending on their address, and questioned longer bus routes and extracurricular access.

“I don’t think that was a goal,” Norris said. “And I’m just really concerned.”

Norris also raised concern about travel distances if students are assigned to Chopticon High School, located about 15 miles from parts of Clarks Landing in Hollywood.

Next Steps

The St. Mary’s County Board of Education is scheduled to receive a final presentation March 4 and is expected to vote on the redistricting proposal March 18. Families affected by any boundary changes must be notified by April 30. As part of the rules of a public hearing, board members did not respond to public comment during the hearing.

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