(Kingsford Heights, IN) - There could be a large turnout of residents opposed to the potential closure of Kingsford Heights Elementary School during a workshop session of the school board in the community tonight.
The meeting is set for 6 p.m. at Kingsford Heights Elementary School.
The choice to close the school is being seriously considered to help reduce operating expenses caused by enrollment decline over the past 15 years or so throughout the school corporation.
Orlando Dunlap, a lifelong resident, said he and his children went to the school and looked forward to having grandchildren in the building. He expects a few hundred people to be in attendance in a show of unity to try and keep the school open.
“It would devastate the town. Hopefully, they’ll take the other alternative that they can take rather than close our school,” he said.
According to school officials, the building is only at about one-third of its 350-student capacity.
However, Dunlap said some of the drop in student headcount there is due to all 5th graders being transferred to the Intermediate School at the Kesling campus when that school opened several years ago. He noted how new houses built and occupied by families with children in recent years in the Kingsford Heights area, with more new homes on the way, will help raise the number of students at the school.
If the school is closed, Dunlap said, a lot of parents have vowed to send their grade school children to other districts like South Central and Oregon Davis, which would mean a further drop in enrollment and money for the school district.
“We have options, too,” he said.
The school district has lost about 900 students over the past 15 years or so, with a majority of that decline from school choice.
Interim Schools Superintendent Dr. Peggy Hinckley said the workshop session was scheduled for Kingsford Heights to give the community a chance to offer as much input as possible before a final decision is made.
A final decision on the possible school closure is expected on March 19.
