Public hearings on two new possible school closures

I wrote two blog posts previously in November and December about possible school closures in the Olympia School District (OSD). 

A number of schools, including Lincoln Elementary in our neighborhood, were considered by the board over the last few months. They later dropped off the list but two other elementary schools were added to it.

Madison and McKenny

On the OSD School Facility Efficiency Review webpage, the board’s action last December was described thus, “The Olympia School Board voted on December 14, 2023, to open a 90-day window to accept community input regarding a board proposal to consider Madison and McKenny elementary schools for school consolidation/closure.” Three of the school board members voted for the proposal and two voted against it.

OSD For All

After the December school board meeting, a community group, OSD For All, sprung up to oppose the closure of these schools and any schools in the district. On their website, they said they would rather the school district instead fix structural issues associated with funding Olympia schools. The group is also supporting, and encouraging others to support, a number of bills in the Legislature to improve schools.

I learned about OSD For All when Gerry Apple and I attended a meeting of the Council of Neighborhood Associations (CNA) in early January and heard a presentation by three of the group’s founders, Dune Ives, Miriam Hathaway and Mindy Swedberg, about their efforts.

What comes next?

The school board has scheduled two public hearings on its proposal to possibly close Madison and McKenny:

Feb 26, 2024 – 6 pm at Madison Elementary School in the Madison multipurpose room

Feb 29, 2024 – 6 pm at McKenny Elementary School in the McKenny multipurpose room

The school board will also hold two work sessions on Jan 29 and Feb 12 at 6 pm at the Knox Administrative Center.

And the board is scheduled to possibly take action on school closure and consolidation during its regular board meeting on March 14.

As mentioned in my other posts, school board meetings and work sessions are recorded. Agendas and other information about them are on the Board Docs website.

School District Replacement Levy – Feb 13

Also school funding-related, JOLT News reported that Proposition 1, the Olympia School District’s replacement levy, was on the agenda at a recent Olympia City Council meeting, and council members approved a resolution in support of the levy, which will be put before the voters in a special election on Feb 13.