Baltimore County Public Schools plans to launch a boundary study by October 2026 aimed at easing overcrowding at Overlea High School, currently the district’s most congested traditional high school. The study will also involve neighboring Loch Raven and Parkville high schools, which have lower enrollment levels, to explore potential redistricting options.

As of 2025, Overlea High was operating at approximately 146 percent of its state-rated capacity, with an enrollment more than 500 students above the recommended maximum. This places it just behind Watershed Public Charter School, which leads overall overcrowding at 152 percent capacity. By comparison, Loch Raven High was at 72 percent capacity and Parkville High at nearly 94 percent. Projections through 2035 suggest that without intervention, Overlea’s utilization could reach 167 percent by 2028, while Loch Raven and Parkville are expected to remain below the county’s overcrowding threshold of 110 percent.

The boundary study committee will comprise school leaders, staff, and parents from the affected high schools and their feeder middle schools, including Parkville, Nottingham, Loch Raven, Pine Grove, Ridgely, and Cockeysville. Interested parents must submit an interest form or contact their school principal by July 19 to participate. The group is scheduled to convene for an initial meeting in early October 2026, followed by four additional meetings, with an optional sixth session planned for January 2027.

The redistricting process has faced criticism in the past. During a recent boundary review for southeastern county elementary schools, some committee members and parents expressed dissatisfaction with the outcomes and the timing of the enrollment data used. For instance, Janice Merryweather, a parent at Chase Elementary who participated in that study, recommended an additional public meeting to enhance transparency. Similarly, Morgan Wood, a parent at Oliver Beach Elementary, voiced concerns after new enrollment figures emerged after the committee had made its recommendations. Wood also suggested including at-large committee members unaffiliated with the schools involved and shifting the process timeline to utilize enrollment data from the same school year being evaluated.

Newly appointed Baltimore County Public Schools Superintendent Bill Heiser, whose previous role was chief operating officer for Anne Arundel County Public Schools during its recent contentious redistricting, said he will review county operations within his first 100 days but declined to comment directly on the existing redistricting process.

Separately, the Baltimore County Advisory Committee on Public School Capacity, established to evaluate overcrowding solutions and provide guidance to the superintendent, school board, and County Council, is expected to hold its first meeting later this month. The nine-member committee currently has four vacancies, including three appointments by County Council members and one at-large member to be named by County Executive Kathy Klausmeier.