Our Services
Capacity/Utilization Studies
School capacity must account for the individual and specific ways that each building serves children in their community. Special programs and room uses need to be taken into account. Analyzing a functional capacity versus current and forecasted enrollment is key to developing reliable long-range facility plans.
Demographic Analysis
In order to know what will happen to school enrollment, you must first know what will happen to the entire population. Age structure and aging dynamics of various areas are the primary driver of population/enrollment change. As part of our process, we forecast the entire population by 5-year age cohorts, and the results of these findings drive accurate enrollment forecasts.
Redistricting
Redistricting can take on many forms and we help the client decide the proper approach to fit the needs of their community. Cropper GIS has implemented 100’s of redistricting studies in a variety of ways. The key is to integrate community input at some level and form.
Facility Planning
Facility planning doesn’t always mean construction. It is important to examine all of the possible methods to help relieve over/under crowding of facilities. From low cost & simple measures such as program re-location to high cost & complex measures such as capital construction, it is important to fully explore all options before making a decision.
Pupil-Yield Studies
Data is evolving into mapping formats. Area assessors/auditors offices map properties to ensure they are taxing the citizens correctly. This information can be coupled with school district data to provide a rich dataset that shows how many students come out of the housing stock in the area.
Web Mapping Applications
School locator tools are now driven by GIS mapping, where parents/public/school staff can type in an address and see a map of where the address falls and what schools that area is assigned to. Secured, internal versions of mapping are also used by school administrators to view and count students in areas. Technology that was formerly limited to GIS experts can now be used by any person with a computer and an internet connection.
GIS Implementation & Training
Cropper GIS consults with many school systems on mapping/GIS. We work with many districts that have GIS staff, and help to build their abilities and help them to use best practices. We also help districts who are interested in building GIS capacity internally, and can guide you through the various pitfalls that exist in the GIS world.
GIS Consulting
We help solve problems and answer questions that have been asked for decades. Emerging datasets and technology now enable districts to find answers to questions that they couldn’t accurately answer in the past. Questions such as, “Do changes that are being considered to zones really have an impact on overall transportation distance for students?”, can now have an efficient and accurate answer.