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District follows state law to review Washington Elementary magnet pilot; public hearing, comment deadlines set
Summary
District staff said Oct. 7 that Washington Elementary’s magnet pilot is undergoing a required review under recent state law; staff noted that the program had been grandfathering students after a prior board decision and that a public hearing will occur Nov. 3 with written comments due by Nov. 12 ahead of a possible Nov. 18 board action.
Salt Lake City School District staff told the board on Oct. 7 they are following a formal review process required by recent state law to consider whether to discontinue the Washington Elementary magnet pilot program.
Staff said the program began serving grade 4 students three years ago and expanded to include grades 4–6 in subsequent years. The board considered whether to continue the pilot at meetings in April 2024 and earlier; district staff said that the board previously declined to continue the pilot and that the program had been grandfathering existing students while the magnet closed to new applicants.
The state law change cited by staff requires an affirmative board vote and a closure review for special enrollment programs. Staff said the G5 closure process will apply for Washington and that notifications and a public hearing have been scheduled. District staff advised the board that no students are currently enrolled in grade 4 at Washington and that only sixth grade will be served this school year; staff also pointed to uneven enrollment across remaining magnet sites districtwide as a factor to consider.
Amanda Longwell asked whether the board could reopen Washington at a future date; staff replied the board could choose to restore a magnet program later but encouraged looking first at districtwide program alignment and feeder patterns to consider where a program would best serve tested students.
Staff set a public hearing date of Nov. 3 and said written comment forms will be accepted through noon on Nov. 12. The board will receive printed comment summaries before the Nov. 18 decision window.
Ending — What’s next
The district will gather written comments through Nov. 12, hold a public hearing on Nov. 3 and return to the board with materials summarized ahead of the Nov. 18 meeting, when the board may vote.
