ADAMS COUNTY, Colo. — On Thursday, Adams 12 Five Star Schools will present recommendations for school closures and consolidations as declining enrollment continues to cause challenges for the district.
The district says enrollment has dropped by 6,000 students since 2018.
It's a trend that is causing the district to consider closing and consolidating anywhere between five to seven schools.
The recommendations the district presents Thursday evening will be made based off several factors including, enrollment, building condition, academic performance and more.
As of the publishing of the article, the number of closures and consolidations can change and no schools have been determined yet.
District staff says the declining enrollment continues to create financial and operational challenges even though the district has cut their budget by about $27.5 million and cut about 150 positions.
And with school funding and enrollment going hand in hand, fewer students results in fewer resources, according to district staff.
In an interview earlier this year, Denver7 spoke with the district Superintendent, Chris Gdowski, about the lower enrollment numbers and the impacts the district is seeing.
“This will be the first time that we probably just have some things that are closed and not something taking its place,” Gdowski said in the April interview.
“For most of our 75 year history that we have here on the board, we've been growing, growing, growing. There are two times in the past where we've repurposed some schools”.
“About 20 years ago, we closed an elementary school, we moved to school, and we opened up the Studio School, a performing arts focused school, and then during my tenure, about 15 years ago, we repurposed a middle school and made it into a k8 STEM school. Those are the two things in my memory that we've done in the past,” he added.
Gdowski also shared a message for concerned parents in the district saying, “I've been in all these schools. I have great memories in these schools. I understand why families love their schools. And will grieve the potential or actual closing of their schools. We wish we could take that away, just given the economics of school funding in Colorado and these demographic trends, we feel like we've got no choice but to do this”.
The district expects the trend of declining enrollment to continue for the next 10 years, and sees the closures and consolidations as part of a long term solution.
Thursday’s meeting at the Adams 12 Five Star Schools Educational Support Center is strictly for the district’s presentation of their recommendations there will be no public comment. It starts at 6PM.
The community can share their thoughts in separate hearings that will be held for schools impacted throughout the month. The district's FAQ page answers some questions for families ahead of Thursday night's meeting.
The board will vote on the recommendation Oct. 7 and any changes will go into effect for the 2027-2028 school year.
The decline in enrollment is a trend Denver7 has covered in districts across the state.
Denver7 spoke with Boulder Valley School District officials, who said they started seeing a decline in 2017.
Denver Public Schools has also seen a decline over the years, according to Denver Public Schools Executive Director of Enrollment and Campus Planning Andrew Huber.
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