Overview
- District leaders presented three “transformation” options on Tuesday that would unprogram 14 to 16 buildings, redraw attendance boundaries, and move about 12 to 14 percent of students, roughly 3,500, to other schools.
- The district cites long‑term enrollment decline and a near $39.7–$40 million operating gap as the main reasons for the plan, and earlier reviews found more than half of MPS buildings are used at 70 percent capacity or less.
- District officials disclosed only limited financial detail at the presentation, listing utilities savings of roughly $560,000 to $705,000 per year while leaving net savings, transition costs, staffing effects, and timelines for reusing buildings unspecified.
- Parents, teachers and the Minneapolis Federation of Educators strongly criticized the proposals for lack of transparency and potential harm to communities, and board member Greta Callahan emphasized the board has not yet approved any plan.
- The plan would keep community high schools open but relocate several specialized programs into other sites, the district promises minimum academic intervention and full‑time art/music/gym teachers at retained elementary schools, and a public feedback period runs through mid‑October with a November vote and possible 2027–28 implementation.