Overview
- Students, educators, and advocates rallied before the board meeting, urging directors to halt the proposal to close 20 schools.
- District leaders say the 10-year plan would reassign nearly 5,000 students starting in 2027–28, co-locate six schools, and modernize many others.
- Independent analyses say 15 of the 20 schools slated for closure are majority Black and many sit in high-vulnerability areas, raising equity concerns.
- Roughly 90% of displaced students would move to higher-performing schools, but about 400 from John Welsh and Overbrook Elementary would be sent to lower-performing options.
- The district will hold school-by-school meetings Feb. 2–21 and two Feb. 16 town halls, with officials indicating parts of the proposal could change based on feedback.