SAN ANTONIO — Two Edgewood ISD schools are closing next year in a cost savings move by the district after years of declining enrollment.
The Edgewood ISD Board of Trustees voted 5-1 Tuesday night to shutter Winston Intermediate School of Excellence and E.T. Wren Middle School.
“This is really upsetting. It affected literally every single person. Wren is not just a building to students, it’s not just a school, it’s a history building. That building has history.”
At least a dozen parents, students and community members spoke in opposition to the plan before the vote, which led to trustee Michael Valdez peppering district leaders with questions about the public process he noted should have been more transparent and started much sooner.
One of the parents who addressed the board was Valerie Lozano, whose three boys attend schools in the district. Her youngest children go to Winston Intermediate School of Excellence while her oldest is a freshman at Kennedy High School. As a result of the board’s decision, Lozano’s looking at charter schools as a possible next move for one of her kids.
“Very disappointing. My youngest son will probably be attending another school outside of the district,” Lozano said. “They didn’t consider what our kids have gone through, so what’s the point of keeping them here.”
Jacob Gallegos, who attends Wren Middle School, believes school closures will inconvenience and rip apart friendships and families.
“This is really upsetting. It affected literally every single person. Wren is not just a building to students, it’s not just a school, it’s a history building. That building has history.”
A task force made up of school officials and parents started with 50 members and ended with just over 20 in the latest meeting, according to district officials. The task force discussed almost a dozen options regarding the shuttering of schools and hosted a handful of community meetings to gather public input.
Edgewood ISD leaders noted enrollment has fallen by nearly 22% since 2017 with students occupying 50% of the district’s overall capacity and as a result costed the district $8 million a year.
Superintendent Dr. Eduardo Hernandez stressed the necessity of school closures as an ultimate benefit for students’ academic success down the road. Strengthening trust with a community grieving from the decision will be important he added, which he said largely falls on the responsibility of the community making the initiative to routinely attend public meetings to share their input.
The district will work with parents and teachers, providing guidance for next steps related to moving to new schools and accommodating the challenges of transportation as expressed by many in the community.
“Our neighborhood schools have a purpose it’s just gonna take time because funding is not there. But we have to make these hard choices to prove to the community that we know how to use our money,” Hernandez said.
Declining enrollment and a lack of operational funds is a problem other schools districts are experiencing.
On Monday, San Antonio ISD voted 5-2 to close 15 schools and merge others as part of their so-called rightsizing plan.