McKeel schools seek Kingsford campus; board to consider 180-day MOU and right-of-entry April 22

Representatives of McKeel Academy and district staff briefed the Polk County School Board on April 8 about a memorandum of understanding that would give McKeel a 180-day due-diligence period and right-of-entry to Kingsford Elementary as the charter operator explores use of the campus.

Director of Facilities and Planning Mark McLemore described the Kingsford campus as “just over 18 and a half acres” in unincorporated Polk County, with four buildings totaling roughly 53,500 square feet and a state-rated capacity of 442 students under existing rooming standards. He told the board the proposed MOU would give the Schools of McKeel a 180-day due-diligence period and right of entry to inspect condition and move forward with decisions; staff will return April 22 for official adoption of the MOU.

Candy Amato, senior director for charter schools, and Jeff Black, executive director of McKeel schools, explained how McKeel has considered Kingsford both as a relocation site and as a potential new campus. Black told the board his organization considered moving its South McKeel campus to Kingsford but determined the site lacks sufficient buildable acres for a relocation of South McKeel’s roughly 1,200 students. “There's not enough buildable property… it's maybe 10, 11 acres that's actually buildable, including the campus that sits on that campus,” Black said.

Board members repeatedly asked how McKeel would prioritize neighborhood students and whether the charter would preserve community representation in enrollment. Black said charter admissions are run by open enrollment and lottery; he said McKeel historically opens slots to families in the community and would “honor the current population in that area.” He also said McKeel runs an annual open-enrollment process that typically receives 3,000–3,500 applicants for about 350 open seats.

Amato explained the district’s practice for underutilized school availability: a group that notifies the district first has priority to pursue the site; multiple parties had expressed interest in Kingsford and the district would move to the next interested group if McKeel declines. Board Member Miller pressed for written commitments about how a future McKeel campus would reflect neighborhood demographics; the board asked staff to follow up with McKeel to clarify how the school would handle enrollment priorities and representation.

The MOU will come back to the board on April 22 for consideration. The presentation included site details, community questions about student representation, and commitments from McKeel to work with district staff on enrollment priorities and the development timeline; no final contract or transfer was approved on April 8.