At the end of four hours of debate and by a vote of 4-3, the Orange County School Board approved the attendance zone for the new high school under construction in Ocoee on Tuesday of last week. The plan, one offered by School Board Member Karen Ardaman, also moves 285 students from Olympia High to West Orange High, a move unpopular with the Windermere-area parents who spoke against it.

Voting for the plan were Ardaman, Jim Martin, Tim Shea and Rick Roach. Voting against it were Joie Cadle, Anne Geiger and Kat Gordon. The board also voted 6-1 for its staff to bring back an ordinance that would allow all the students presently attending Olympia who live in the rezoned area to finish their high school career there. Only Gordon voted against this measure.

Speakers in opposition to the plan were approximately 30 residents of The Willows, Citrus Oaks, Windermere Club and Crescent Lake, who wanted to keep their students in the Olympia High zone. Three speakers from Ocoee, including Mayor Scott Vandergrift and City Commissioner Scott Anderson, also were against the plan because Ocoee residents south of West Colonial Drive would stay at West Orange High instead of attending the new school.

"Please make this a community school," asked the mayor.

Ann Walsh, an Ocoee resident from south of West Colonial, asked the board not to send that area's students to the new school because they are much closer to West Orange, where they want to stay. She said her area had sent a petition with 400 names to the board supporting this position.

The new Ocoee school, known currently as the West Orange/Apopka Relief High School, will draw Ocoee students north of West Colonial Drive, northeast Winter Garden students, south Apopka students and west Pine Hills students.

According to information given out at the meeting from Sandy Simpson of Pupil Assignment, attending the new school will be 2,315 students from WOHS and 435 from Apopka High to put the student population at an estimated 2,750. The school is expected to be 50 percent white, 34 percent black and 16 percent Hispanic.

The new zoning will put West Orange at an estimated 2,385 (down from the current enrollment of 4,226), Olympia at an estimated 3,125 (down from 3,332 and still over capacity) and Apopka at an estimated 3,630 (down from 3,997 and still over capacity). "I am excited that the rezoning has been approved and that we can begin the process of building a true sense of community for every student within our attendance zone," said Mike Armbruster, relief school principal.

"I am already looking for volunteers in each area to possibly open their home for small community meetings."

He asks anyone interested in hosting a cottage meeting to contact his office at 407-905-2026.

"We will have a wonderful cultural mix, socio-economic mix and racial mix," said Armbruster. "Our theme of 'unity' will begin from day one to make sure that each and every child feels like this is their school."

The Windermere-area parents criticized Ardaman and the zoning process for coming up with a plan different from the OCPS staff's plan at what they termed the "11th hour" at the Dec. 6, 2004, work session and without giving them enough time to voice their opposition or concerns.

Michael Feldman of The Willows said that choosing the new plan at that workshop as the one advertised was "patently irresponsible and unfair."

Other residents said that even though Olympia cannot have portables, a legal part of the original plan for the school, there is room for permanent modular buildings.

Ardaman adamantly defended her plan. She said she saw problems with the staff's recommendation and felt it was her responsibility to make it the best plan possible.

"When the process began," she said, "I didn't think Olympia would be affected."

But as she diligently looked at the proposed plans and studied them she said it became clear to her that Olympia needed relief and that was not being accomplished.

"I looked at the feeder pattern very carefully," she said, and she felt she improved upon how the Gotha Middle School students were brought into high school.

Her goal, she said, was not to do what was easy to avoid controversy but what was "best and fair."At Olympia, classrooms have been subdivided for two classes. Classes are being held in the auditorium and lobbies. Drafting rooms can't be used for their intended purpose. Traffic is a big headache."It is absolutely necessary to do something for this school,' said Ardaman. "There will not ever be an Olympia relief school," but there will be for West Orange and Apopka high schools.

At the other end of the rezoning spectrum, the advertised rezoning Plan B for the Tildenville/Lake Whitney Relief Elementary School passed without anyone from the public wishing to speak and in a quick and unanimous vote by the School Board.

This plan will keep students from crossing State Road 50 to attend Tildenville Elementary. Going to the new school located at 15300 Stoneybrook West Parkway in Winter Garden will be 426 students from Tildenville (except for those students who opt to stay in the Dual Language Program there) and 180 students from Lake Whitney Elementary. This will give Tildenville an estimated enrollment of 554 and Lake Whitney an estimated enrollment of 607.

Ardaman also announced that Tildenville's Dual Language Program will be a magnet in the future and "available to students throughout West Orange County."