As Corpus Christi ISD school board members express concerns and ask questions about potential school closures, the futures of Kostoryz Elementary School and Schanen Estates Elementary School remain undecided.
The Corpus Christi Independent School District Board of Trustees discussed a plan to potentially close the two campuses due to costly maintenance needs during a meeting April 28. District leaders previously pitched the plan during committee meetings this spring.
“What about the families?” trustee Marty Bell said during the meeting. “What about the kids, what about the moms and dads and how (closure) is going to impact their life?”
The school board voted to table the decision. Superintendent Roland Hernandez said that a decision will likely be made in May.
“These conversations, they're healthy conversations,” Hernandez said. “I know they're not easy. There's a lot of emotion involved in these conversations. But as a district, whatever we choose to do now or what we don't address now is something that will have to be addressed down the road.”
What is the plan to close Kostoryz and Schanen Estates?
The two planned closures would impact Club Estates, Dawson, Galvan, Los Encinos, Sanders and Yeager elementary schools as school boundaries are redrawn.
Kostoryz Elementary School students would be rezoned somewhat evenly between Galvan, Los Encinos, Sanders and Yeager elementary schools.
More than half of Schanen Estates Elementary School students would be rezoned to Dawson Elementary School, with 29% rezoned to Club Estates Elementary School and 12% rezoned to Sanders Elementary School.
As a result, enrollments at each of the remaining campuses are expected to grow. Portables, which are already in use at several Corpus Christi ISD schools, would continue to be needed at several of the impacted campuses.
District staff highlighted several benefits of consolidating two campuses during the April 28 presentation, including savings of maintenance and other costs, improved campus efficiency and potential impacts to future school accountability ratings.
During school board committee meetings this spring, district staff outlined maintenance needs at six elementary schools located in southwest Corpus Christi.
Kostoryz Elementary School’s HVAC chillers need replacing. Additionally, the campus has needs related to cast-iron plumbing, chiller water supply and return lines, roofing and deteriorating portable classrooms.
Schanen Estates has maintenance needs related to roofing, cast-iron plumbing, chiller water supply and return lines, weathered concrete and asbestos in classroom acoustic installation.
Yeager, Sanders, Club Estates and Galvan elementary schools also have needs related to HVAC systems and roofing, though work is planned this summer for Club Estates and Galvan elementary schools.
If Kostoryz and Schanen Estates close, all staff members will still have jobs in Corpus Christi ISD, said Karen Griffith, the district's deputy superintendent of business and support services.
The district has staff vacancies, Griffith said. If the campuses are closed, teachers, administrators and staff will be able to fill open spots across the district, alleviating some of the district's teacher shortage, Griffith said.
What are school board members saying?
Trustee Steve Barrera is a former CCISD principal who led several schools that the district closed and consolidated with other campuses.
“I understand what it is to go through this process,” Barrera said. “It does impact a lot of people.”
Bell said that he's observed morning drop-offs at Schanen Estates Elementary School and seen children walking to school. If those schools are closed, students will have to ride the bus or parents will have to drive to farther campuses, Bell said.
This would mean lost time in the morning for families, Bell said.
“I raised three kids, and 30 minutes in the morning is like gold,” Bell said.
Bell said he'd rather find the money to fix the maintenance issues at the campuses and keep them open.
Other school board members said during the meeting that they still have questions.
Trustee Don Clark said that in previous meetings, the school board heard about needs at Sanders Elementary School. If voters had approved the district's last bond proposition in 2024, Sanders Elementary School would also be preparing for a closure.
Clark said that Sanders Elementary School doesn't have adequate facilities and questioned why it is now expected to remain open. Sanders Elementary School has “pod” classrooms, which means that to reach some classrooms, students and staff have to walk through other classrooms.
Trustee Dolly Gonzales Trolley echoed Clark's concerns, particularly about how outdated school layouts impact special education students and the condition of Sanders Elementary School.
“We do have to make some tough decisions — I'm not against that — but we owe it to our voters, our students, our parents, our teachers, to come up with the right plan,” Gonzales Trolley said.
Kostoryz and Schanen Estates are not the only campuses that need to be replaced, Griffith said, but those campuses have the most immediate needs.
If Kostoryz and Schanen Estates elementary schools do close and Sanders Elementary School remains open next year, students moved to that campus might have to move schools again if Sanders is eventually closed in future years.
“It's too far down the road to tell that,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez said that if the schools remain open, the district will need to make repairs. Closing small campuses is an opportunity to consolidate and move students to newer, more efficient facilities, Hernandez said.
The district will likely be considering another bond election, Hernandez said, because “the needs are there.”
“We have many campuses that are very much older, 50- to 60-plus years old,” Hernandez said. “They have high needs when it comes to renovations and repairs and maintenance.”
Former United Steelworkers union president in Corpus Christi pleads guilty to embezzlement
Are Corpus Christi ISD schools earning A's or F's? TEA releases 2023 school ratings
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Corpus Christi ISD delays decision on school closure plans
Source link
