LaPorte superintendent recommends decommissioning Lincoln Elementary, repurposing building for preschool and CTE expansion

Superintendent Wood recommended the LaPorte Community School Corp. board decommission Lincoln Elementary as an elementary school beginning with the 2025–26 school year, redirect its students to three nearby elementary schools, and repurpose the Lincoln building as a centralized early‑childhood center while moving preschool out of the Boston Building to free space for an expanded career-and-technical-education (CTE) hub.

The recommendation, which Wood described as the result of "approximately 90 days of listening, learning, researching, talking to people, reviewing the finances, reviewing the enrollment trends," would redirect Lincoln students to three other elementary schools within about 1.2 miles of Lincoln and locate all district preschool programming at the Lincoln site. Wood said the plan would allow the district to offer childcare paired with preschool programming so working families could drop off children before work and pick them up after.

Why it matters

The proposal attracted a strong turnout of parents, teachers and students during public comment who warned of negative impacts on vulnerable students, transportation burdens and community cohesion.…