Granite School District recommends closing two elementary schools after Area 5 boundary study; community pushes for delay

Granite School District Superintendent Ben Worsley and district staff on Tuesday presented Population Analysis Committee (PAC) recommendations that would close two elementary schools in an Area 5 boundary study and shift students into neighboring schools while continuing public engagement through the fall.

The district’s PAC recommended that Eastwood Elementary be closed and its attendance area combined with Oak Ridge Elementary, and that Morningside Elementary be recommended for closure with most students reassigned to Driggs Elementary (and smaller pockets reassigned to Cottonwood Elementary). Steve Hogan, who identified himself as representing the PAC, told the meeting the recommendation is a draft for board consideration and "this is still a feedback phase. November board meeting, it's a little later in November this year," and a final board action would follow in December if the board moves forward.

The proposal and the presentation prompted more than three hours of public comment from parents, teachers and residents, who raised concerns about walking and bus routes, special education services, teacher retention, the timeline for decisions, perceived lack of transparency, and the risk that families will leave the district or enroll in charter schools if closures proceed.

Hogan described the drivers behind the recommendation as long-term enrollment decline, facility condition index (FCI) rankings and program alignment. "We've closed 10 elementary schools in Granite (over the last several years), and right now the recommendation is for 2 more," he said, outlining factors the PAC considered including inboundary population, utilization, FCI, transportation…