Parents, students and teachers urge Leander ISD to protect programs and keep neighborhood schools open

Multiple parents, a student and other community members urged the Leander ISD Board of Trustees Sept. 30 to keep neighborhood schools open and to avoid cutting core services while the district examines long-term facility and budget options.

A fifth-grade student from Green Hills Elementary opened public comment by reminding the board that trustees are "the local government body responsible for serving the educational needs of all school children like me and my friends here in Leander Independent School District." Several parents then testified about programs they said were essential to their children’s education.

Ashley Wallace, who identified herself as a parent of two students at Westside Elementary, told the board that cuts to reading interventions, dyslexia supports and 504 services would cause vulnerable students to "slip through the cracks." She urged trustees to look first at central-office spending, contracts and nonessential consulting budgets before reducing front-line positions, and to keep drawing on reserves to avoid eliminating lifeline services.

Several speakers backed a resolution the board was considering that they said should include clear timelines, operational definitions of facility needs, measurable benchmarks and transparent decision points so families would understand how and when a school might be considered for consolidation or closure. One commenter requested an annual enrollment matrix that would ensure equitable treatment for all campuses.

Other speakers also urged the board to prioritize staff and program preservation over building-level decisions, saying that staff and core programs, not the building itself, are what matter most for student learning. Trustees and staff heard repeated requests that prekindergarten programs and how pre-K enrollment should factor into any consolidation criteria be carefully considered so course corrections would not inadvertently remove early-learning access.

Trustees acknowledged the concerns and told speakers the resolution and subsequent board work would aim to provide the transparency and metrics parents requested. Several trustees said the board wanted measurable benchmarks and a public process that would pause before any irreversible actions.

The district has directed administration to present proposals for public engagement, program analysis and staffing guidelines and to return to the board for follow-up public meetings.