NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — A committee charged with coming up with a plan to close and consolidate Norfolk Public Schools held its first meeting last week.
By the end of June, the group is to submit an “actionable, city-wide plan” that will allow the school division to shift toward having newer and fewer schools.
While the plan to start the School Board’s Educational and Facilities Planning Advisory Committee was formed earlier this year, the initiative took on new urgency when Norfolk City Council passed a resolution demanding the school division submit a plan by Aug. 1 to close and consolidate 10 schools in five years.
However some school board members don’t want the City Council’s directive to guide their process.
“We do need to take action, but it cannot be fast, because we do have children and families and teachers and staff that their livelihoods on the line,” board member Jason Inge said at a recent meeting. “This will reshape how Norfolk looks moving forward for our future.”
School Board member Dr. Adale Martin said, “If we don’t come up with 10 because 10 doesn’t work for our school district, we’ll have that discussion.”
In a webpage discussing the new committee, it’s noted that NPS has faced an average annual enrollment decline of more than 400 students.
The roughly 50 schools in the school division can handle a combined capacity of nearly 37,000 students. Enrollment is currently less than 27,000.
“The existing school portfolio was designed for a larger student population in a different era, and modernizing NPS requires a shift toward newer, fewer schools that can provide all students with the enriching, well-resourced educational environments they deserve,” the webpage reads.
The school board appointed 33 members to the committee back on March 19.
Its first meeting was held May 1 at Norview High School. The second will be held at the same location May 14.
The meetings will be public, however committee member Charla Smith-Worley said the real work will be collaborating with fellow committee members.
“I think so we’ve got a wonderful, wonderful committee,” Smith-Worley said. “It’s so diverse. I think that we can make a recommendation.”
During its first meeting, the committee was provided the number of vacant seats per school.
Seven schools had more than 300 vacant seats, with Ruffner School’s 3rd-8th grades leading the list.
In addition, the committee is looking at the age of the schools.
In the latest facilities conditions assessment, 39 of Norfolk’s 49 schools acre considered in “poor condition.”
The average age of the city’s schools is 55-years-old, six years above the national average for all school facilities, according to the USDoE National Center for Educational Statistics.
The current system needs an estimated $906 million in capital needs.
“We also looked at the facilities scores to see the condition of the building and how much it would cost to redo if it was even possible to redo the building,” said Liz Albert, another committee member. “So we looked at that and deciding which schools we were able to consolidate.”
Smith-Worley is confident the group can deliver a report to the school board by the end of June — even if everyone won’t be happy.
“I’m a retired schoolteacher,” Smith-Worley said. “Any time you change boundaries in any way, any time you’re telling somebody you’re going to a different school, it’s an emotional process. We’re trying to take the emotion out of that. It’s not going to be easy … and I think that’s part of the reason nothing has been done.”
