R​edistricting is the process of drawing boundaries for political districts in the United States and is usually done every 10 years after the decennial census. The redistricting process re-balances districts to account for population shifts, thus ensuring equal representation.

Section 1001.36, F.S., requires that School Board Member districts be “divided into at least five district school board member residence areas, which shall be numbered one to five, inclusive, and which shall, as nearly as practicable, be equal in population” and such changes may only be amended in odd-numbered years. It is best practice to redraw the boundaries when there is a ten percent or greater disparity in population.

The 2020 Census data indicates that School Board Member districts have grown disproportionately over the past decade, thereby requiring redistricting in 2021 to achieve greater equality between districts. The Census data needed for redistricting is usually released by the Census Bureau in March following the decennial Census, or March 2021. However, due to the impacts of COVID-19, the data was delayed, creating a compressed redistricting timeline.

Hillsborough County Public Schools’ Growth Management department reached out to Hillsborough County’s Geographic Information System (GIS) team to assist with providing the School Board with three scenarios for the reapportionment of the single member districts. The mapping criteria includes:

• Community integrity (keeping neighborhoods together)
• Population
• Maintaining minority demographic balance (37.3% African American or greater, District 5 - 2020 Census Data)
• Ethnicity Breakdown (ethnic and racial breakdown)