By admin 
TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – Community members gathered in a school gym Wednesday night for the second time in a week to discuss a Tucson Unified School District plan that could close up to 10 schools.
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The event, called “Reimagining Our Schools Together,” gave parents and community members a chance to share concerns and recommendations with the district.
Why the district is closing schools
TUSD said birth rates are low and families are choosing charter schools and Empowerment Scholarship Accounts, which the district says is draining money from TUSD.
Parents at the event raised a range of concerns.
“My biggest concern is class sizes,” said Mandy Carlsen, a TUSD parent.
“Knowing what’s going on is really important to my kids’ future and for the kids after them,” said Margaret Zuniga, another TUSD parent.
“What might we lose that would make people go to a different district, and what might that look like as people start to exit?” said Emily McGlamery, another TUSD parent.
District staff said 270 people RSVP’d for the event, but only about 70 attended.
How the event was structured
The district gave a presentation, then attendees brainstormed in small groups and summarized their concerns “popcorn-style.”
Attendees raised questions and concerns including whether open enrollment would still be available, accessible and safe transportation to new facilities, whether administrators would know students by name, and whether middle schools would have gyms for hot weather. Many specific programs were mentioned too, including Montessori education, programs for English Language Learners, sports, and fine arts.
The small groups were run by facilitators, including district curriculum and learning specialist Alma Carmona-Alday.
“When we bring people together, we’re able to think of many solutions or ideas that we hadn’t thought of before,” Carmona-Alday said.
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Carmona-Alday asked attendees, “What are the programs that will attract families to come to our district?”
Committee member weighs in
Dawn Demps, a member of the district’s 22-person School Closures Committee, said protecting vulnerable populations is a main concern.
“Just making sure that the decisions are being made in a way that protects the most vulnerable populations is really one of my main concerns,” Demps said.
Demps has a Ph.D. in education policy and a daughter at Tucson High.
“We have high poverty here, so overall the whole community needs to be considered, but there are certain students and families that need more things,” Demps said.
What’s next
The School Closures Committee still has work to do, and a list of schools is not expected for a couple of months.
The TUSD Governing Board is scheduled to vote on Dec. 8.
Community members will have one more chance to give input at the final “Reimagining Our Schools” session, scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday at Tucson High.
Isabela Lisco is aReport for America corpsmember covering education solutions for 13 News. Her position is made possible through funding from Report for America and theArizona Local News Foundation’s Arizona Community Collaborative Fund.
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