SEATTLE, Wash. — Seattle parents are speaking up against potential school closures as the district threatens to close doors due to budget cuts.
Right now, Superintendent Dr. Brent Jones tells us Seattle Public Schools (SPS) is over budget by $94 million for the 25-26 school year.
This has been in the works since Summer 2023, but only recently have schools been specifically named for possible closure. Those schools are Stevens, Sacajawea, North Beach, and Sanislo Elementary Schools.
Those consolidations would be as follows:
- Northwest Region: Closing – North Beach Elementary Consolidating with Viewlands Elementary at Viewlands
- Northeast Region: Closing – Sacajawea Elementary Consolidating with John Rogers Elementary at John Rogers
- Central Region: Closing – Stevens Elementary Consolidating with Montlake Elementary at Montlake
- Southwest Region: Closing – Sanislo Elementary Consolidating with Highland Park Elementary at Highland Park
Four meetings are being held for concerned parents to voice why they believe the locations should remain open. This is also a chance for the district to explain why they are choosing these schools. Each meeting will be held on a Tuesday through November. The next meeting is Tuesday, November 12 at 6 p.m. at Sanislo Elementary School.
The first meeting was held Thursday night at Sacajawea Elementary School.
SPS did not allow our news cameras into that meeting and denied our questions to the superintendent.
However, the district has laid out a comprehensive closure plan online. It shows there are several reasons to close schools, but the biggest factor is low enrollment.
Data shows in 1964, 94,000 students were enrolled at Seattle Public Schools across 117 schools.
Now, 60 years later, enrollment has been cut in half to 48,000 students, but 104 buildings remain.
With that, KIRO 7 broke the data down a step further.
Out of those 104 buildings-- 29 elementary schools have less than 300 students.
Three out of the four at risk of closure have even less than that:
Stevens Elementary School:152 enrolled
Sacajawea Elementary School:198 enrolled
Sanislo Elementary School: 171 enrolled
North Beach Elementary: 349 enrolled
Parents were quite vocal at the Thursday meeting, telling us it’s not fair to split the kids from their friends and familiar environment.
“I feel like they want to close the school but they’re not saying it yet and because they haven’t voted on it yet but I think they made the decision already they’re just not telling us that they have,” said parent Alessandro Bitto.
Dr. Jones’ letters to parents acknowledged the frustration of the parents, saying:
“We understand this change is difficult. We chose these schools based on factors like building condition, space, and the goal of minimizing disruption to students and families.”
The SPS website goes on to say when schools are combined, a transition plan will be put into place to answer any questions by parents and students.
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