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Students and parents call district consolidation plan “half‑baked,” urge redistricting instead
Summary
Multiple students, parents and community members told the Corvallis School District Board the proposed consolidation is inequitable and rushed, urging boundary changes rather than the district’s plan, which they say addresses only a portion of the budget shortfall.
At a Sept. 25 special meeting, students and parents criticized the Corvallis School District’s consolidation plan as inequitable and hurried, urging the Board of Directors to pursue redistricting instead.
Student Vibhav Javali said the plan is a "half- baked" attempt that fails to confront the district’s declining elementary enrollment and warned that discussion of a possible Crescent Valley High School (CVHS) closure review in 2028–29 is damaging student identity and prompting transfers. "It’s inequitable and fails to address the real problem of enrollment decline," Javali said.
Several other students and community members echoed that message. Penelope Seldera‑Bahnson called the process "extremely rushed," and Kiran Gibson said uncertainty over a CVHS review is causing panic and encouraging transfers to Corvallis High School (CHS). Parent Amanda McBride urged clearer staff communications, noting that the plan’s estimated 11.2 full‑time equivalent (FTE) reduction appears to address only about $2 million of the district’s budget gap and would affect roughly 135 middle‑school staff.
Community member Steven Hoke described the proposal as a "failure dressed up as progress," warning that losing electives and other programs would disproportionately harm students who rely on specialized services. Parents and students testified that Leticia Carson Elementary has seen reductions in art and library time; students Jack and Max Blacker said music and art frequency was reduced and library access shortened.
Speakers urged alternatives: several commenters recommended closing one or more elementary schools plus immediate redistricting to balance utilization (one parent cited a projection of elementary utilization around 59% versus middle‑school utilization near 86%). Others asked the Board to restrict inter‑district transfers to protect equity across high schools.
The Board did not record a formal response to the public comments in the minutes. The consolidation plan and related documents are posted with the meeting packet for public review; Board leadership said it will continue studying options and return materials as required by governance timelines.
