Natick's Johnson Elementary To Close At End Of School Year

NATICK, MA — Johnson Elementary School has served a special role in Natick for the last 75 years. At the end of this school year, however, the doors at Johnson won't open for neighborhood kids again.

Natick Superintendent Bella Wong announced recently that this school year would be the final year that the town would use Johnson Elementary School.

This doesn't come as a surprise but does confirm when the school will close after the decision was made in 2021 to eventually move on from Johnson.

Wong's explanation for the decision was this:

"Last week I met with current Johnson families to let them know that this will be the last year for the Johnson Elementary School. There are currently two grade 4 and one grade 2/3 sections in the school. This means there was only one 3/4 section remaining for next year's school projection.

I met with Principal Turner and the faculty several times this past summer to discuss options for the next school year based on this projection. It is clear, due to the special commitment of the staff to the Johnson students, school and community, that the needs of the current students are being extremely well met. However, we all agreed no matter how dedicated and talented the staff is, it was not best to foresee for students to operate a school with one section."

The timing is odd for the district, which plans to honor the 75th anniversary of the school despite its impending closure.

"For many reasons this should be a special celebration indeed," Wong said.

In 2021, the School Committee voted to approve a decision to close the school by June 2025.

According to district officials at the time, Johnson would have needed at least $3.3 million in renovations from 2021 to 2026, the bulk of that for Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) upgrades. Officials have said that money would be better spent upgrading other district facilities, like Memorial Elementary.

Read more: Natick Will Close Johnson Elementary School By 2025