Hyattsville and Port Towns-area schools are among those in northern and central Prince George's County that school officials are reviewing for boundary changes in an effort to even enrollment at overcrowded and underutilized schools.

Schools filled to less than 80 percent capacity or more than 105 percent capacity are targets for consolidation, while performance on state tests, facility conditions and special programs are among other considerations, school officials have said in meetings held throughout the county in October.

Five area schools have an enrollment higher than 105 percent: Beacon Heights Elementary in East Riverdale; Carole Highlands Elementary; Hyattsville Middle and Riverdale Elementary in Riverdale Park; and Thomas S. Stone Elementary in Mount Rainier. César Ch·vez near Chillum is the only school in the area under enrolled by less than 80 percent. The school is at 60 percent capacity.

Schools spokeswoman Lynn McCawley said the reasons behind the disparity in school enrollment are one factor that is being examined as part of the boundary review.

Hyattsville Middle principal Gail Golden said her school is very overcrowded — it has 127 more students than its capacity of 612, according to school system statistics.

"I know that if the boundaries are changed, that it's because we want to provide the best education for our students," she said. "But I don't want to lose any of my students. These neighborhoods have been coming here for years."

The school has 11 temporary classrooms — trailers — and is also home to the Creative and Performing Arts department, a magnet program drawing students countywide. About 150 Hyattsville Middle students come from outside school boundaries, and about half of the students ride buses to school. Hyattsville Middle PTA president Denice Melito said parents are waiting to see the proposed changes, but there are already concerns over how the CPA department and transportation could be affected.

"They're concerned because it is a great school," she said. "When they're talking about boundary changes and taking it down to less students and less overcrowding, no more temporary [classrooms] —that's a great thing. But will the programs be affected?"

Since the school system compiled the enrollment statistics, Beacon Heights Elementary enrollment has increased even more, to 502 students, leaving the school at 139 percent capacity, Principal Lynne Stuewe said. The school has seven classroom trailers.

A newly built housing development nearby and a transient population close to the school have contributed to the overcrowding, Stuewe said.

Although new boundaries could alleviate overcrowding and traffic problems, Stuewe said some students have already been to various schools because their families move often.

"Overall, if I look across our kids, we have a good number of kids that have been here from kindergarten to grade six. And we have an equal number of kids who have been in four different schools," Stuewe said. "We get very attached to the children in this building. ... When we do get in new students, we really wish they would stay long enough to have the impact on their education."

E-mail Elahe Izadi at eizadi@gazette.net.