The Colorado Springs School District 11 Board of Education on Tuesday heard a special report on structural and fire‑safety concerns at Jenkins Middle School and approved short‑term relocations for students while the district pursues repairs.

Superintendent Goll said a December fire inspection revealed that settling in the building’s seventh‑ and eighth‑grade wing has begun to impair passive fire mitigation (metal fire doors and related systems), prompting the district to move classes temporarily. "The fire department's inspection this year revealed that they had long term concerns with the ways that the building has mitigated that risk," Goll said, and the district has contracted a professional firm, at the Colorado Springs Fire Department's recommendation, to assess the building.

District officials told the board the immediate plan is to split Jenkins’ roughly 800 students across two nearby schools: sixth graders will go to Russell Middle School and seventh and eighth graders to Doherty High School. The district plans to close Jenkins, Doherty and Russell for at least Tuesday and Wednesday next week (with Monday a holiday) to allow staff time to adjust schedules and set up space. Community information sessions were scheduled at Doherty the night after the meeting and again Jan. 20; the district posted a dedicated Jenkins page on the D11 website for daily updates.

Why this matters: Jenkins’ structural issues were traced to settling that first drew attention within the school’s first decade and have surfaced intermittently in engineering studies over the past 15–20 years. While earlier structural analyses (including a 2022 study) found no immediate structural safety risk, district staff said the December inspection found the building’s passive fire protections—doors and frames—are no longer performing as intended. District leaders emphasized they are shifting previously budgeted capital dollars (originally planned for 2027) forward to address the problem sooner.

Board members emphasized accountability and the district’s responsibility for long‑standing maintenance. Director Malphakam (Board of Education) said the timeline has shifted "up" and that "resources are not an issue" for the board’s commitment to remediate Jenkins. Director Bankers and other board members acknowledged the disruption for families and staff but urged cooperation as the district implements the temporary relocations.

District officials said an independent engineering report from Jensen Hughes (hired at the fire department’s recommendation) should be available as early as the end of next week and will inform scope and cost estimates for renovation. Superintendent Goll said students’ current teachers will remain with their classes in the new locations where possible and described plans for orientation, counseling support and transportation adjustments to reduce family disruption. "The trusted face of the individual… is coming with you," he said, referring to teachers who will relocate with their students.

Public commenters at the meeting urged faster action and challenged the district about prior knowledge of the problem. Several speakers said Jenkins’ issues had been known for years and criticized the district’s past timing on repairs and communication. The board and administration acknowledged shortcomings in earlier communications and said they will strive to improve outreach and 100% direct contact with families by principals.

The district said long‑term capital money already existed in the capital program for Jenkins work in 2027 but that the board has moved to accelerate that timeline. Officials did not give a final repair cost during the meeting and said cost estimates will arrive with the Jensen Hughes report. The Board of Education said it will present Jenkins‑specific budget items to the board as standalone agenda items once the district has definitive scope and cost information.

Looking ahead: District staff plan to brief the community in multiple sessions, to provide transportation planning details and to post rolling updates at the Jenkins D11 webpage. The district said it expects to pursue a permanent remediation and hopes to return Jenkins to full operation by August, though timelines are contingent on the third‑party assessment and required construction work.