Five schools are proposed to close under Alachua County Public Schools’ rezoning maps. The district hosted meetings at each of them between Tuesday and Wednesday, addressing remaining concerns regarding school closures and their impact on the community.
The district provided updated maps Wednesday. While the new maps further distinguish zoning for certain neighborhoods, they offer little change to proposed closures.
At the elementary, middle and high school levels, the district added an updated version of Map C, which changes boundary lines along certain neighborhoods.
An additional map was added to the elementary school and high school levels. Both offer slight boundary changes, with the elementary school Map D retaining Rawlings Elementary School, which was proposed for closure in two of the three original maps.
Across the maps, the district proposed the closure of five elementary schools — Alachua, Rawlings, Foster and Williams Elementary Schools and Duval Early Learning Academy, a pre-K through kindergarten school.
While previous community input meetings have been led by both the district and JBPro – the engineering company hired by ACPS to design the rezoning maps – Tuesday and Wednesday’s meetings were run entirely by the school district.
It consisted of a presentation on school closures and frequently asked questions. This 30-minute presentation was followed by an hour-long question and answer session, during which questions were restricted to index cards collected by representatives throughout the meeting.
Community members attempted to engage in a public discussion, with many yelling out comments and questions. Such efforts were dismissed by the school district, but largely unsuppressed.
Throughout the question and answer session, community members applauded and laughed at the questions. When district responses were vague, the audience grew restless — with many members leaving early.
Deputy Superintendent Cathy Atria, who ran the question and answer session, explained the notecards allowed the district to keep record of community members' concerns.
Unanswered questions will be compiled into another frequently asked questions document to be shared later this week, Atria said.
Throughout the meeting, attendees asked questions about a variety of issues relating to school closures. One concern was what will happen to vacant school buildings after they close.
Once the board confirms school closures March 12, Atria said, the district will decide what to do with empty buildings.
The district estimates it will save “anywhere from $850,000 to $1.1 million per year" for each closed school, she said.
Other concerns focused on specific schools, like Foster Elementary School. Several index cards asked whether teachers will keep their jobs following school closures.
Teachers can expect to hear about their relocation in April, Atria said.
With the closure of Foster Elementary School, the school’s magnet program is planned to move to Norton Elementary School. Atria didn’t confirm whether specialized teachers from Foster Elementary School will follow the program to Norton.
While some questions searched for details on the rezoning, others targeted the district.
“Why is the plan so racist?” one card read.
The card, along with others mentioning the disproportionality of school closures, referred to the proposed closure of schools in East Gainesville, which is home to several historically Black neighborhoods.
Of the five schools proposed for closure, Williams, Rawlings and Duval are on the east side. Foster Elementary School, located on Northwest Sixth Street, is within an area often considered greater East Gainesville.
Atria did not address the question.
“Why are you all so comfortable lying to us?” read another card.
The question, like many others, garnered applause from the audience. Following the audience’s reaction, Atria denied lying to the crowd.
Throughout the meeting, Atria encouraged community members to share input with school board members through the ACPS website, email and public comment during board meetings.
“The decision about whether or not a map is adopted or even changed … is in the hands of the
school board members,” Atria said.
The school board will host a workshop on the maps Feb. 26 at 6 p.m. in the district board room.
Contact Grace Larson at glarson@alligator.org. Follow her on X @graceellarson.
Grace Larson is a first-year journalism student, currently serving as K-12 education reporter. She has previously served as city/county commission reporter for The Alligator's metro desk. In her free time, she enjoys staying active and hanging out with her family.
