Spring Independent School District trustees on Thursday heard draft "optimization" scenarios from Civic Solutions Group intended to address a reported $13 million budget shortfall and falling student enrollment across the district.

Consultant Olin Parker told trustees the district’s elementary schools are at about 64% capacity, middle schools 61% and high schools 54%, and that maintaining underused facilities diverts money from teacher pay, programming and building improvements. He said the district’s unofficial Oct. 31 enrollment count was roughly 1,100 students lower than demographer projections and about 600 lower than last year.

The recommendation package released in draft form includes five scenario categories: consolidations and rezoning for under-enrolled campuses (for example, closing or consolidating Link Elementary), a multi-campus middle-school rezone that would center on the recommended closure of Do It Middle School, and implementation of TEA-approved turnaround or redesign models — ACE, 1882 partnerships and ADZi extended-day/year models — at select campuses. The report emphasizes aligning feeder patterns (elementary→middle→high) and repurposing savings from reduced facility costs to programming and staff.

Why it matters: district leaders said demographic trends and national declines in birth rates plus slower housing turnover have reduced enrollment, creating structural budget pressure the district cannot "recruit" its way out of. "You cannot educate, you cannot recruit a child that has never been born," Olin Parker said, stressing that the scenarios are intended to accelerate academic achievement while improving fiscal stability.

What the scenarios propose: Scenario 1 identifies Link Elementary as among the oldest and most under-enrolled campuses and offers options to rezone its students to nearby Lewis and Benecke or to a redesigned Heritage campus with new programming. A larger scenario centers on closing Do It Middle School (about 50% utilization) and rezoning its students to Bailey, Twin Creeks, Bammel and Wells with proposed program redesigns for receiving campuses. Parker said many receiving campuses would move students to higher-rated campuses or to campuses that would adopt proven turnaround models.

On program options, the consultant described ACE as a TEA-approved restart intervention that directs high-quality teachers and wraparound services to chronically underperforming schools; 1882 partnerships as district-authorized operator/charter models or branded programmatic partnerships; and ADZi as an extended-day/year model that adds instructional time to combat summer learning loss. Parker noted TEA offers grant funding (often called Lasso grants) to support these interventions and cited Texas examples where campuses improved accountability ratings after implementing these models.

Public engagement and timeline: The district will hold three in-person community work sessions at the Community Engagement Center on Nov. 18–20 and maintains an online, translatable survey (QR code provided at the meeting). Parker said the district will present survey results and staff feedback at the board’s December meeting so trustees can weigh community input before making any formal decisions.

Public comment: One resident, Matt Brogan, urged the board to back the superintendent and support the proposed changes: "He's a man of his word. I ask all of you to stand behind him and support him," Brogan said.

Board action taken: In open session the board unanimously approved a motion to keep Winchi High School as a 9–12 comprehensive campus under the current campus configuration. Later, after a closed meeting, trustees voted 5–1 to engage Rogers, Morris & Grover to provide legal counsel to the district and to authorize the superintendent or his designee to negotiate an engagement agreement.

What’s next: Consultants and staff stressed the presentation is a draft and community feedback will shape any final recommendations. Trustees were urged to share the survey and attend upcoming engagement sessions; staff said a fuller financial analysis tied to each scenario will be provided as the district refines options ahead of the December board meeting.

Source material: presentation and discussion by Civic Solutions Group, Spring ISD staff and trustees at the special called session; public comment; posted scenario maps and data slides shown during the meeting.