Austin ISD proposes closing 13 schools
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Kindergarten teacher Angela Lafuente instructs students in Spanish at Ridgetop Elementary School on Wednesday. The school is one of four in the district that offers Spanish dual language across the entire campus. Photo: Mikala Compton/The Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images
Thirteen Austin ISD schools would shutter by next school year under a plan unveiled Friday evening.
Why it matters: Schools have long been part of neighborhood DNA, but the district is facing a fiscal crunch and declining enrollment, leading officials to make difficult choices about which schools to close.
Driving the news: These schools would close under the district's draft plan:
- Barrington Elementary School
- Becker Elementary School
- Bedichek Middle School
- Bryker Woods Elementary School
- Dawson Elementary School
- Maplewood Elementary School
- Martin Middle School
- Oak Springs Elementary School
- Palm Elementary School
- Ridgetop Elementary School
- Sunset Valley Elementary School
- Widén Elementary School
- Winn Montessori
Zoom in: 98% of schools' attendance boundaries would change.
- Four elementary schools — Pickle, Wooten, Odom and Sánchez — would be repurposed to campus-wide, non-zoned Spanish dual-language programs.
- Parents can see how their child's school attendance zone would change in this interactive map.
Follow the money: The plan would result in $20 million in immediate savings from reduced staff, and additional facility operations savings.
What they're saying: Superintendent Matias Segura announced the proposed changes in an email to parents at 5:45pm Friday, after officials shared the plan with school principals.
- "All Austin ISD families deserve to have excellent, well-resourced neighborhood schools. While this is true for some, we have fallen short in serving some of our most historically underserved students. To achieve this vision, we must work together to transform as a community, ensuring our resources allow all students to learn in a vibrant, well-resourced school," he said in the email.
The other side: "Some of these schools are community gems. What a travesty," Jill Nichols, an Austin pediatrician, wrote on Facebook.
- "Maplewood was my elementary school — so many memories!" Emmalee Crow posted. "Sad to hear it is closing."
Context: School officials evaluated campuses based on how well a school's size, building condition, number of students, and costs all work together, district spokesperson Jorge Maldonado told Axios earlier this year.
The big picture: For six years, per-student state funding was stagnant, as costs rose and pandemic-era federal funding dried up. The Legislature this year approved $8.5 billion in school funding, though advocates said it wasn't enough to keep pace with inflation.
- Meanwhile, Austin ISD enrollment has dropped by about 10,000 over the past decade to below 73,000, leaving about 25,000 empty seats.
- Those factors, along with slower property tax growth, has left Austin ISD facing a $19.7 million budget shortfall.
Put another way: The district has fixed costs for every school — keeping the lights on, emptying the trash and, yes, paying teachers and staff — that can be especially expensive for ones lightly attended.
By the numbers: Without school closures, about 76% of campus seats would be filled next school year.
- District officials say the plan would fill 82% of seats.
What's next: The district is soliciting feedback and will hold several community meetings over the next five weeks.
- Trustees are scheduled to vote on a final plan on Nov. 20.