The Pflugerville ISD board of trustees voted May 14 to close four elementary schools after the 2026-27 school year: Dessau, Parmer Lane, Pflugerville and Windermere. The decision comes after months of considering what optimization actions to take to address PfISD's projected multimillion dollar budget shortfalls over the next several years. Further optimization actions could be taken at a later date.
The action taken
Several alternate amendments were made against the motion to close Dessau, Parmer Lane and Pflugerville by trustee Claudia Yañez, which would have postponed making any district optimization decisions until later in the year. These amendments ultimately failed, and the board voted 7-0 to close the three campuses.
Yañez and trustee Jean Mayer both voiced concerns with still having questions about the transition process with these closures, but trustee Alex Okafor said extending the optimization process will ultimately not be beneficial for the district.
"We can't afford to keep kicking the can down the road," Okafor said.
Trustee Renae Mitchell also motioned to close Windermere Elementary, which passed 4-3, with Mayer, Yañez and board president Chevonne Lorigo-Johst voting against.
Mayer made an amendment to postpone this decision until at least December that ultimately failed, but cited concerns with losing trust from Windermere families after several spoke during the public comment period at the start of the meeting.
Some context
District officials began a district optimization process with Civic Solutions Group last fall to review enrollment trends, campus utilization, financial projections and other long-range planning considerations.
Twelve draft optimization scenarios were presented at the March 5 board meeting, and community meetings were later held at nine campuses to garner feedback on the scenarios alongside a ThoughtExchange survey.
According to CSG partner Olin Parker, PfISD will need to make $3 million-$5 million in cuts in fiscal year 2026-27, $16 million-$18 million in FY 2027-28, and another $1 million-$3 million in FY 2028-29 to address projected budget shortfalls and maintain the district's fund balance over the next three years.
At the May 7 board meeting, Lorigo-Johst said a few scenarios were removed from the list of potential recommendations, including closing Westview Middle School; redesigning Dearing Elementary as a high-performing choice option; exploring new programming at Mott Elementary, Bohls Middle School and Cele Middle School; and switching high school schedules to eight-period days.
