Board opens hearings on proposed consolidations; staff to return with final recommendations in December

The board opened public hearings on proposed consolidations affecting several elementary schools, including North Branch, R. O. Brown and Long Branch, and heard questions about community engagement, data and timeline for final decisions.

Board member Willie said community members face repeated school closings and that the board needs to present ACE working-group materials and decision analyses in the board packet. "I think 1 thing that we have to also take into consideration is within certain neighborhoods and geography what other schools have been closed or consolidated... that's a lot of weight on a community," she said, requesting the working-group decks and recommendations be included in future packet materials.

Staff said final recommendations and the superintendent’s formal recommendations will be presented in December and that there will not be a vote in November. "That will allow for the board to lean in and ask questions around those recommendations," a staff member said. Staff also confirmed workshops and agenda‑committee review will occur before the December public hearing when the board can take action.

Board members discussed enrollment, capacity and continuity concerns, including whether consolidated schools could offer both gifted-and-talented tracks and neighborhood programs within a single campus and whether families would be able to access continuity into middle- and high‑school magnet pathways. Staff said multiple models were examined by the working groups and that recommended approaches to integrate specialized programs into campuses would be included in the recommendation packet.

Board members asked for more granular capacity numbers. One board member noted R. O. Brown’s enrollment of roughly 282 students (after a prior merger) versus a capacity figure near 450; staff said those numbers would be available in the follow-up materials. Staff reiterated that the process includes a public hearing now and a return of recommendations later in the calendar cycle.