MPS town hall meetings; parents, student weigh future of district buildings
MILWAUKEE - The future of Milwaukee Public Schools could look a lot smaller, but the school district wants input before deciding on shutting down or merging schools.
Monday night, Sept. 30, was the first of several town hall meetings this month that MPS is holding. It comes after a firm came out with data for a 10-year plan and nothing is official at this point.
MPS parents and students filled Rufus King High School's cafeteria as part of the district's town hall meetings, many not happy about the potential closure for schools in the district.
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"Mistrusting. As we all do," MPS parent Katrina Saffold said. "I think I speak for a lot of parents. We don't process."
MPS hired a consultant to study district buildings, analyze data, and gather public input – to ensure the district’s learning spaces meet the needs of students and the community. The plan is known as the Long-Range Facilities Master Plan.
"I think it needs to be approached carefully," Rufus King student Owen Dristows said.
The report, done by Perkins Eastman, an architectural and consulting firm, shows enrollment has decreased by 14% over the last 10 years and buildings are outdated and aging.
"Any time we talk about changes there is always that potential right," MPS interim superintendent Eduardo Galvan said. "A lot of people grew up in a school and they want that school to live on forever."
Data proposes shutting down or merging schools with less than 50% capacity and that haven't seen an improvement in enrollment in five years.
"We’ve seen that about a quarter of the district is underutilized and a quarter of the district is overenrolled," said Perkins Eastman project manager Nathan Morris.
MPS alternative high schools staying open, board rejects proposal
MPS administrators asked the board to close two alternative high schools next month, but board members voted to keep them open.
It also applies if the school is within one mile of another school.
"I would be open to it if we were exploring consolidating high schools," Dristows said.
Nothing is official. District leaders say they'll listen to the community first, but parents say they don't trust the process.
"We have a hard time trusting MPS when at the head we’ve seen so much funding and money has been misappropriated," Saffold said.
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The firm said a proposal will be complete by the end of October that could include schools potentially impacted.
Town hall meetings
Remaining in-person town hall meetings will be held from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. on the following dates:
- Tuesday, Oct. 1, Parkside School for the Arts, 2969 S. Howell Avenue
- Wednesday, Oct. 2, at Hamilton High School, 6215 W. Warnimont Avenue
- Thursday, Oct. 3, at James Madison High School, 8135 W. Florist Avenue
Weigh in via Zoom
In addition, two virtual town hall meetings will be held via Zoom on Monday, Oct. 7, from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. and 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. To register, visit mpsmke.com/mpsspsc.
For more information about the 10-year plan, visit mpsfacilitiesplan.com.