The DeKalb CUSD 428 Board of Education voted to authorize administration to plan and cost‑analyze possible grade‑reconfiguration options, including K–4 and 5–6 configurations, after members of the public raised concerns that the district’s Vision 04/28 plan could dismantle established elementary schools.

Nick Kenner, a DeKalb resident who said he participated in early learning programming in the 1990s, told the board converting Founders Elementary “eliminates not just one elementary school, but the biggest elementary school,” and urged officials to consider all solutions before committing funds. Denise Osterlin, a fourth‑grade dual‑language teacher at Founders, asked the board to delay approval of the resolution until “meaningful community involvement” occurs so alternatives can be explored without unnecessarily disrupting students and staff.

Board members and administrators repeatedly described the Vision 04/28 document as an exploratory proposal rather than a final plan. An administrator told the room that committees will be formed to gather community input, costing, and alternative options and that “nothing has been set in stone.” The board amended the resolution to remove parenthetical language that named specific schools in the proposal before approving the measure to permit the district to study impacts and return with recommendations.

During an extended discussion, trustees emphasized equity concerns and capacity calculations. Administrators said preliminary enrollment work shows middle‑grade counts that could range from about 1,015 to roughly 1,550 students across grades 6–8 under current assumptions and that the district will produce a calendarized schedule of projected expenditures and when funds might be spent. Trustees repeatedly asked for the data underlying Vision 04/28; one trustee urged staff to provide the “how the sausage was made” — the calculations and assumptions used to derive the proposed reconfiguration.

The resolution passed on roll call with one recorded dissent (Steve Byers); the board directed staff to return with detailed enrollment projections, cost estimates, and explicit plans for community engagement. Several speakers and trustees noted that any final reconfiguration would still require additional board approval after public hearings and committee work.

What’s next: The board will receive the administrators’ calendarized cost estimates and community‑engagement plan at a future meeting and may schedule advisory sessions to solicit resident input before taking any final action.