Parents and advocates tell Pittsburgh Public Schools: don’t close schools; use charter-reform dollars for special education

Community members packed the public-comment portion of a Pittsburgh Public Schools hearing to press the board to halt school closures and to use newly available funds and budget changes to protect students.

Laura Gallagher, an ally of the 412 Justice and Education Rights Network, told the board the district had ‘‘received a $12,000,000 boost from state cyber charter reforms,’’ and said that money undercut the closure plan’s founding claim of a fiscal emergency. ‘‘This means the budget does not require displacement of 6,000 students,’’ Gallagher said.

Several parents and advocates echoed that point and urged the board to prioritize students. ‘‘We gotta start prioritizing the people that live in this city,’’ said Emily Sawyer, a parent of four Pitt‑area students, who criticized giving repeated tax abatements to developers while raising property taxes that hit lower‑income families.

Paulette Foster, speaking for the Education Rights Network and special‑education advocates, welcomed new board members and urged the district to use the cyber‑charter reform dollars to shore up services. ‘‘This money should be utilized to help with resources that have been lacking in special education,’’ Foster said, and she asked the board to provide transparent timelines so any proposals would not displace students without clear notice.

Others proposed alternatives to wholesale closures. Mike Cummings urged the district to refine procurement (he estimated potential savings of ‘‘10 to $16,000,000 a year’’), to consider leasing administrative space such as the Bellfield building, and to prioritize targeted votes and smaller changes instead of large, sweeping consolidation plans.

Parents also emphasized inclusion. Shannon Schreiner, a Fulton Elementary parent, said Fulton shows ‘‘what commitment to inclusion and community actually looks like’’ and criticized the board’s decision to renew prior leadership that she said had presided over past closure efforts and eroded public trust.

Several speakers disputed claims that rejecting the closure plan shifted the tax burden to homeowners. Valerie Webb Old man cited historical enrollment data and argued that structural funding issues, tax abatements and state formulas are the drivers of the district’s revenue problems, not a single board vote. ‘‘Between those years, enrollment at PPS declined by about 37%,’’ she said, urging the board to request specific budget information before revisiting closure resolutions.

Lily Oman urged a formal audit of past closure costs, saying prior rounds cost ‘‘more than $70,000,000’’ and asking the board to quantify past financial outcomes before assuming closures save money.

The testimony portion concluded after a brief technical problem with the virtual login; staff sent a corrected link to virtual participants and the board proceeded. Board president Gene Walker closed the hearing, reminded participants of an upcoming progress‑monitoring report on third‑grade reading, and adjourned the meeting.

The hearing produced no formal votes; speakers said the board may revisit the closure plan at a later meeting and repeatedly asked for clearer, itemized budget comparisons before any future votes.