Granite superintendent outlines boundary study as enrollment falls; parent committee to weigh school-closure options

Superintendent Ben Morrisley of Granite School District said declining enrollment and high local housing costs have prompted a yearlong boundary and population study that could narrow the district’s list of schools under consideration for closure.

At a town-hall meeting, Morrisley said the district contracted an independent demographer, MGT, and “we've received over 400 comments thus far” on the study. He said the district will form a parent-and-teacher committee in June to develop recommendations for the board, with formal board action not expected until at least November or December; any school closures would be implemented the following fall.

Why it matters: Granite’s enrollment has fallen sharply from a peak of about 78,000 students in the 1990s to roughly 53,000 students projected for next year, Morrisley said, a drop he attributed to lower birth rates and housing costs that push young families to other counties. He described the decline as “about 2 to 3,000 students every year.” That erosion has left some…