LARIMER COUNTY — Over the course of roughly three hours on Tuesday evening, parents of children who attend Northern Colorado mountain schools facing closure recommendations explained to the Poudre School District (PSD) Board of Education why they believe the plan is wrong for the community.
Watch Colette Bordelon's report in the video player below:
Red Feather Lakes, Stove Prairie, and Livermore Elementary Schools could close as part of a larger proposal within the district, and Tuesday's listening session was added to meetings already scheduled to ensure families who rely upon the mountain schools had their voices heard.
“There’s so much dedication. You know your teachers, your teachers know your parents. Everybody’s just one big family. The education is just next to none," said Townsend Prince, who has children attending Livermore Elementary School.
Prince also went to Livermore Elementary School as a child, and said he was incredibly upset when he heard the school could close.
“We’re stressed, and it’s just going to rock our world," Prince said. "You can close a school in town (Fort Collins). There's another school five minutes away. The next school for us is 30 to 45 minutes away.”
On Sept. 25, PSD announced the list of schools recommended for closure or consolidation by the Comprehensive Planning Committee (CPC), which Superintendent Brian Kingsley explained as a group of 25 community members. The proposal is to close nine PSD schools and consolidate two by the fall of the 2027-2028 school year.
"For several years, enrollment in this district has been declining, and much of the strain that decline has placed on our system has been carried quietly behind classroom doors," Kingsley said during the Sept. announcement. "We have already been consolidating for years. We've been consolidating people, cutting millions of dollars from our budget, and eliminating hundreds of positions. Every year that we have protected buildings, we have done it by asking teachers and staff to do more with less. That is not a sustainable way to support the people who teach our students."
The summary of the proposal shows that closing three mountain schools — Red Feather Lakes, Stove Prairie, and Livermore Elementary Schools — could decrease the overall day-to-day operation costs for the district by $2.12 million.
"Probably a drop in the bucket for how much they need to save overall," Prince said in reaction to that figure.
According to the recommendation, enrollment in the three mountain schools totaled 109 students during the 2021-2022 school year. The population of those three schools reached a low of 78 students in the 2025-2026 school year, which the CPC found was a net decline of 31 students, or 28.4% over the 5-year period.
Northern Colorado
Northern Colorado community members fear potential closure of mountain school
Students from the three mountain schools would be assigned to Cache La Poudre Elementary School in La Porte. The projected transportation time for current Red Feather Lakes Elementary School students shows a 59-minute maximum bus ride to the La Porte school, with estimated maximum bus times of 35 minutes for Stove Prairie Elementary School and 22 minutes for Livermore Elementary School.
Another parent at the listening session on Tuesday was Kailee Harvey, who believes the transportation times within the summary document are misleading.
"I don't think it's developmentally appropriate for them to be on a bus for as long as they are expected to be and go to school for a full day," Harvey said about students in elementary school. "That leaves very little time to be a kid, spend time with your family ... I would say that alone is my biggest concern — letting our kids be kids.”
Harvey said if Livermore Elementary School closes, her family would not have the ability to homeschool their children and may have to consider relocating.
The recommended closure and consolidation plan is not finalized. The list will be formally submitted to the Board of Education on Oct. 13, and a final vote on the plan is scheduled for Oct. 27.
The PSD Board of Education will host four more community listening sessions before casting a final vote:
- October 6, 6:00-7:30pm, Livermore Community Hall, 2044 W County Road 74E, Livermore, CO 80536
- October 12, 6:00-7:30pm, Timnath Middle-High School (Auditorium), 4700 E Prospect Road, Timnath CO, 80524
- October 14, 6:00-7:30pm, Rocky Mountain High School (Media Center), 1300 W Swallow Road, Fort Collins, CO 80526
- October 15, 6:00-7:30pm, Poudre High School (Event Center), 201 N Impala Drive, Fort Collins, CO 80521
- October 19, 6:00-7:30pm, Fort Collins High School (Theater), 3400 Lambkin Way, Fort Collins, CO 80525
