BELLEVUE, Wash. — The Bellevue School District is pointing to declining enrollment as to why they are considering closing three elementary schools. It's a proposal that many parents say caught them by surprise and they fear will be disruptive to students in an already difficult time.
Bellevue School District interim Superintendent Art Jarvis isn’t mincing words when it comes to the new reality his district is facing.
“We’ve got to do some things, otherwise we’ll be trying to run a school system on ghost kids that aren’t there,” Jarvis said.
Jarvis added that over the past three years the Bellevue School District has declined by more than 1,500 students and said that trend is expected to continue for years to come. The district is pointing to the COVID-19 pandemic, high rent in Bellevue and a declining birthrate. That’s why district leadership is asking the school board to approve a consolidation plan which would include the closure of three elementary schools.
“For an elementary school to lose 40% of it’s students puts us in a position that, financially ... can’t be stretched to just support small schools,” Jarvis continued. Schools receive funding based on student enrollment.
If approved, students at Ardmore, Eastgate and Wilburton elementary schools would be sent to other schools in the district.
Some parents are not happy.
“We’ve stayed in Eastgate as renters, paying exorbitant rent, making sacrifices to stay in this neighborhood to stay consistent for our kids to stay in this beautiful school,” Bellevue parent Lindsey Hartzel told KING 5 last week.
Bellevue isn’t alone. Across the U.S. the pandemic brought the largest single-year drop in school enrollment since World War II. Seattle Public Schools is anticipating a decline by as much as 1,000 students a year until 2026.
“While there are some people who would walk away and say, I just no longer have the trust or the faith in the public schools, I think Bellevue exemplifies a set of parents that are marvelous to watch,” Jarvis said.
Jarvis pointed to the very parents that are opposing consolidation – proof, he said, that the district may be smaller but does not lack passionate students, parents and teachers.
The consolidation plan must be presented to and approved by the schoolboard – a decision could come as early as march of this year.