Education
BY SHELBIE HAMILTON
McKinney ISD will see three elementary campuses closed prior to the 2026-27 school year. The district’s board of trustees voted unanimously at a Nov. 5 special meeting to approve the closure of the three schools, which are set to be repurposed for alternative district uses. The three campuses chosen to close and be repurposed are: • C. T. Eddins Elementary • Arthur H. McNeil Elementary • Earl & Lottie Wolford Elementary A total of 13 elementary schools that are located south of US 380 and west of US 75, an area that is expected to see decreased enrollment in coming years, were considered for closure. The 39-person Educational Facilities Alignment Committee provided the recommendation. 3 campuses to be repurposed
The speci cs
Elementary campuses considered Campus usage and costs were considered by the committee. Schools evaluated saw an $8,079 average student cost.
Will Cobb, an MISD parent and member of the committee, presented the recommendation at the meeting. During the selection process, each com- mittee member had the opportunity to individually rank each campus for their preferences for closure, and that was later used to inform the committee’s nal recommendation, Cobb said. Five decision-making criteria were used to assess campuses being considered for closure, a meeting presentation stated, including: • Building design capacity
Elementary campus Bennett Eddins* Glen Oaks Johnson McClure McGowen McNeil* Minshew Slaughter Valley Creek Walker Wilmeth Wolford*
Building capacity 800
2024-25 capacity used
2024-25 cost per student
$9,101 $8,755 $7,149 $9,262 $6,710 $7,419 $10,158 $8,229 $7,879 $7,010 $7,294 $8,127 $8,935
53% 56% 73% 51% 78% 67% 52% 51% 86% 80% 59% 51% 58%
653 653 725 850 850 647 850 647 622 647 850 675
• Historic and projected enrollment • Financial e ciency and stewardship • Building age and facility condition • Geographical location and redundancy
The closures are expected to save the district $3 million annually, which MISD Superintendent Shawn Pratt said is savings needed in addition to cuts made to sta .
SOURCE: MCKINNEY ISD COMMUNITY IMPACT
*SELECTED FOR CLOSURE
380
The context
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capacity of 7,583 students is being utilized, which is projected to shrink by more than 5% over the next 10 years, district documents state. “To continue providing our students with an excellent educational experience and maintaining high quality programs that this district expects, we have to be more e cient with the use of our facil- ities and our resources,” Pratt said. “I hoped this day would never come. Unfortunately, it is here.”
The need for campus closures was spurred by projected enrollment growth in the district’s northern sector, while the southwest sector will see enrollment decline. The southwest sector is where the district’s open capacity is for elementary students, while some campuses in the north sectors are projected to see enrollment that surpasses functional capacity limits. Across the 13 elementary campuses in the southwest sector, about 75% of the functional
PEREGRINE DR.
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1 Eddins Elementary 2 Wolford Elementary 3 Arthur H. McNeil Elementary 3
75
N
Looking ahead
Resources will be o ered to both students and families, as well as sta and faculty, a ected by the school closures. Sta displaced by the school closures will be guaranteed a role within the district for the next school year as well as income security. The committee will recommend new attendance zones for all school levels at the board’s Dec. 15 meeting.
Community members a ected by the impending closures expressed concern at the meeting for the impact that campus closures and rezoning will have on school communities. “You can assign teachers elsewhere, but you cannot recreate the trust, collaboration and morale,” community member Sarah Schurman said.
“I assure you that every one of our students ... is going to be taken care of. I promise you that as a result of this process.” KENNETH USSERY, MCKINNEY ISD BOARD MEMBER
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COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM
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