(The Center Square) – Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Brent Jones is officially withdrawing his proposed plan to close elementary schools and is exploring increased levies to fill a lingering budget gap.
Jones wrote a letter to parents on Monday announcing that he was withdrawing his plan after determining there was “no longer a pathway for this approach for the 2025-26 school year.”
Seattle Public Schools was initially considering closing 17 to 21 schools to reduce a budget gap of approximately $100 million. Closing 21 schools would have saved the district about $30 million.
Jones then lowered the number of schools set for closure down to four. The schools were: North Beach Elementary, Sacajawea Elementary, Stevens Elementary and Sanislo Elementary.
However, on Nov. 19, Jones made a surprising announcement that he was considering pulling his preliminary recommendation after Seattle Public Schools parents, students, and school board members voiced frustrations over the plan.
The four school closures would have saved the district $5.5 million out of the $100 million gap.
“The projected $5.5 million savings from the proposed closures are significant,” Jones stated in his letter. “However, we agree that achieving these savings should not come at the cost of dividing our community.”
The district will now consider levy renewal to secure long-term financial stability for the district.
Seattle Public Schools is asking voters to renew two levies in the Feb. 11, 2025, election: The Educational Programs and Operations Levy and the Building Excellence VI Capital Levy.
The Educational Programs and Operations Levy has a current tax rate of 63 cents per $1,000 in assessed value. This means a median home worth $877,694 would pay $552 a year toward the levy.
The Building Excellence VI Capital Levy’s rate is estimated to be somewhere between 79 cents to 93 cents per $1,000 in assessed value. This means that $877,694 home would pay a potential maximum of $816 a year toward the levy if passed by voters.
Seattle Public Schools is also focusing on finding $40 million in state funding, which Jones previously said members of the Legislature have had productive discussions to secure that funding.
Lastly, the Seattle Public Schools Board is looking at $30 million in internal savings.
Decreasing enrollment has been a major factor in producing the budget gap. Over the past seven years alone, enrollment at Seattle Public Schools has dropped by 4,000 students. Despite this, the district still operates nearly the same number of school buildings.
This article was originally published at www.thecentersquare.com
