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Students and parents urge board to keep Vancouver Flex Academy open, say closure process feels 'predetermined'
Summary
Dozens of Flex Academy students, parents and staff told the Vancouver School Board the program is a lifeline for students with IEPs and 504 plans and accused the district of acting as if the school were already closed despite no official vote.
Scores of students, parents and staff urged the Vancouver School District board to preserve Vancouver Flex Academy, describing the program as essential for students with complex needs and criticizing what several speakers called a predetermined closure process.
Multiple speakers recounted how Flex provides tailored supports for students with 504 plans and individualized education program needs and said moving those students would undermine the services that allow them to succeed. "Students deserve better," Abigail Reynolds, a Flex student, told the board, adding that many Flex students rely on the program for social and academic supports.
Parents and students said the district had begun reassignments and placement conversations that treated closure as a foregone conclusion despite no official board vote. "This predetermination has resulted in my child being denied the right to due process under Section 504," parent Ruthie Melnie said at the meeting, calling for clearer communication and procedures to protect students’ legal rights.
Several parents and students described emotional impacts: lost prom experiences, senior‑year uncertainty and anxiety. Colin Perlis, a junior, asked the board to let cohorts graduate together if a closure proceeds, calling reassignment mid‑high school "cruel" and harmful to student relationships.
Parents and advocates also raised practical concerns: Bruce Anderholt warned that alternative programs identified in district materials could offer far fewer instructional hours than Flex, and Peter Stubbs said that while Flex shows higher per‑student costs, those costs reflect higher levels of need that will not necessarily disappear if students are moved elsewhere.
Union and classified staff representatives echoed those concerns, saying repeated staffing reductions have depressed morale and threaten continuity of services. Chief of Swords, the union president for classified staff, said principals and staff have said they lack confidence in current decisions and urged board accountability.
What’s next: Multiple speakers asked the district to communicate clearly that no official closure vote has occurred and to pause reassignment steps that would adversely affect students’ 504 and IEP protections. The board did not take a closure vote at the session; the debate is expected to continue at upcoming workshops and meetings.
