Closure of Schools in 2015-2016 Not Recommended: Council Rock Superintendent

Council Rock administrators have recommended that no elementary schools be closed in the near future.

The statement, made by Superintendent Mark Klein, came during a presentation Thursday in front of the school board.

“We do not recommend the closure of elementary schools in 2015-2016,” Klein said, as he summarized the administration’s assessment of the recommendations made by a volunteer capital planning committee.

Klein did however recommend the board take action on renovations to Newtown and Holland middle schools so that Richboro Middle School could be taken “offline” sometime in the future. A specific time table was not discussed.

Earlier this year, a volunteer Capital Planning Committee offered three proposals on how best to handle district buildings in relation to enrollment. All of the proposals suggested that closing schools is a fiscally necessary next step for the district. Schools suggested for closure included Wrightstown Elementary School, Richboro Middle and Rolling Hills Elementary.

The idea to close schools stemmed from the belief that enrollment is declining. However, Klein noted Thursday that current data show that is not presently the case in Council Rock, particularly in the elementary schools. At the elementary level, “we are beginning to see a stabilization or a slow increase in enrollment,” Klein said.

Closing either Wrightstown or Rolling Hills would perpetuate the use of modular classrooms at other schools, something the district has been working to scale back in recent years, Klein noted.

The administration’s findings were met with a mixed response from board members, with several saying they were “disappointed.”

Board member Jerold Grupp said he “struggled with doing nothing.”

Member Mark Byelich also said he was disappointed and felt as if the recommendations didn’t take enough action.

The board sentiments frustrated some in the crowd, including Wrightstown Elementary advocate Amy McIntyre.

McIntyre said it was disheartening to hear school board members say they were “disappointed” that closing schools wasn’t recommended. She also took some members to task for saying Klein’s presentation was simple. “It is simple, the kids don’t fit,” McIntyre said.

Wrightstown resident Jason Funk said the facts are clear that closing schools isn’t a prudent approach. “Enrollment is in fact not declining,” Funk said, adding that closing a school for the sake of a closing it is “very shortsighted.”

The district’s capital plan will be discussed next at a meeting on Sept. 18 at the Chancellor Center.