The Wichita school board voted 5-2 Monday to shutter two middle schools and four elementary schools at the end of this academic year — a decision one board member described as “excruciating.”
Board president Stan Reeser said he and his colleagues had no choice but to close the schools — Hadley and Jardine Middle Schools, and Clark, Cleveland, Park and Payne elementaries — because of declining enrollment, aging buildings and a $42 million budget deficit.
“We’ve asked our schools to connect with the community, and now we’re asking them … to close your building, so that is excruciating for board members,” Reeser said. “This is tough. This is hard, and hopefully you don’t have to address this every two years.”
The board’s two newest members, Melody McCray-Miller and Ngoc Vuong, voted against the proposal. Both said the plan was rushed through without enough explanation or time for families and community members to weigh in.
“True community oversight of our school district, true financial oversight of our school district has been violated,” Vuong said. “I want all options on the table. I want our community … to have much greater say, much greater decision making.”
Leaders say closing the six schools will save about $16 million and hundreds of jobs. Employees at buildings slated for closure will have the option to be reassigned to schools elsewhere in the district and are being offered a one-time $2,400 retention bonus.
The closures will require about 2,200 students to attend different schools in August.
Superintendent Kelly Bielefeld said he considered several factors when selecting which schools to close, including their enrollment over time, their overall condition, and whether nearby schools have enough room for more students.
Twenty speakers addressed board members before Monday’s vote, and dozens more during a public hearing last week.
“Please vote no on school closures. Our children matter. Our families matter. Our communities matter,” said Candida Jeronimo, a special education paraeducator at Park Elementary. “Fight for us, because we deserve better.”
Samantha Stillman said school officials rushed the plan and didn’t spend enough time exploring alternatives.
“You talked about transparency, and I didn’t see it,” said Stillman, whose children attended Payne Elementary. “We can make budget cuts without having to sacrifice schools.”
Many also accused district leaders of targeting low-income schools and students — some of whom may have to walk more than two miles to school when their current schools close.
“It is a shame that the people in charge of our budget have so blatantly drained our account,” said Ruth Lehman, whose daughter attends Cleaveland Traditional Magnet Elementary, “and then have made the poorest communities in our area have to take the brunt of your mistakes.”
Susan Willis, chief financial officer for Wichita schools, said the situation leading up to proposed closures was “more than a financial challenge.” Continued enrollment losses, staffing challenges, deferred maintenance and the district’s overall capacity make closing some schools the smart choice, she said.
“This was not a situation where we wanted to put you in a corner,” Willis said. “But it is important to know that the long-term items we’ve talked about — staffing, enrollment decline — those aren’t things we see changing in the next five to 10 years.”
Board member Diane Albert said hearing the passionate arguments of parents and students shows how important schools are to the community.
“We know that there are no perfect solutions, only trade-offs,” Albert said. “The decision to close schools is not one taken lightly, but is driven by the need to ensure that our educational offerings meet high standards within the realities of our budget.”
Over the past 150 years, the Wichita school district has permanently closed 42 school buildings. Another 10 closed as regular schools but are now used for special programs or magnets, such as the Chester Lewis Learning Center at the previous Mathewson Junior High. Another three closed schools were incorporated into other buildings, like the former Roosevelt Middle School which is now part of East High.
It’s unclear what will happen with the six buildings after they close. District leaders said they don’t plan to sell the schools right away. Consultants studying demographics and enrollment trends will present a facilities master plan to the school board later this year. That plan is expected to outline long-term options for consolidating schools or programs.
