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Superintendent pauses closure vote, says district will expand feasibility report and handle demographer work in-house
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Walters told the April 23 meeting the district is not voting to close schools now but instead will complete additional financial, transportation and capital analyses, received two demographer proposals (one for $207,031 that could not meet scope), and will present updated feasibility recommendations and phasing in late May.
Superintendent Dr. Walters addressed board members on April 23 to clarify that a previous request to the board was not a vote to close schools but a request to begin the state-required public-commentary period. "The vote we requested was not a vote to close schools. It was a vote to begin a state required public commentary period," Walters said.
Walters said district staff are finalizing several reports requested by the board—financial-impact analysis, transportation considerations, capital-investment needs and alignment with instructional practices—to give a fuller picture of how proposed facility recommendations could affect students and families.
On demographer procurement, Walters said the district issued a request for proposals and received two responses. One proposal, at a cost of $207,031 from a nonlocal firm, was acknowledged as unable to deliver the full scope. The superintendent said the district chose a fiscally responsible approach that will add substantial work to central-office staff but allow the district to meet scope and cost objectives; that work is already underway. Walters said the updated feasibility report and a final set of recommendations, including proposed phasing, will be publicly presented in late May.
No action to open the public-hearing process on potential school closures was taken at the meeting; the district will return with the additional analyses before seeking the state-required public-comment period.
