GCISD's Education Master Planning Committee, or EMPC, recommended exploring campus consolidation as part of a broader effort to stabilize finances, Chief Operations Officer Paula Barbaroux said at an Oct. 27 trustee meeting. Enrollment in GCISD has dropped by about 1,500 students since 2019, resulting in more than $10 million in lost state funding, district documents state. EMPC projections show combining campuses could save the district up to $3 million through staffing and operational cuts.
The gist
While the committee recommended closing campuses, no action has been taken, and the committee has not decided how many or which campuses should close, Barbaroux added. Trustees will also need to vote on whether or not to follow the committee's recommendations.
"They [the EMPC] believe that consolidation on some level is clearly necessary," Barbaroux said. "Combinations of scenarios are still under review."
By the numbers
To maintain the district’s current average elementary school student-teacher ratio of 20-1, the district would need to eliminate 11 elementary school teacher positions, Chief Human Resources Officer Kelly Mires said. More than 11 teachers naturally leave the district every year through turnover, Mires added.
One campus closure would save the district roughly $1.5 million, with the 11 teachers accounting for about $704,000, while cuts to support staff, like custodial and administrative aides, could save the district an additional $788,000, after accounting for a small number of support staff relocations, according to a presentation from Mires.
For each additional closure, up to three campuses, the district would save another $788,000 for each closed campus.
The EMPC developed a rubric to assess each elementary school campus, divided into facilities and education factors. Facilities factors include:
- Year built
- Future repair costs
- Operational costs
- Functional capacity
- Accountability rating
- Attendance rate
- Community engagement
- Staff recruitment and retention
- Student achievement and post-secondary readiness
Grapevine Elementary and Cannon Elementary schools scored the highest on the rubric, with a score of 22.2 and 21.8, respectively. Dove Elementary and OC Taylor Elementary schools had the lowest scores with a 12.4 and 13, respectively.
EMPC documents show Dove was built in 1972 and is currently facing more than $24 million in future repair costs. OC Taylor was built in 1986 and is currently facing just under $15 million in future repair costs.
"This is the first step of the analysis, this is by no means where it ends," Barbaroux said.
Looking ahead
District staff would develop a transition plan for any staff whose positions get eliminated, Executive Director of Communications Nicole Lyons said.
"We have developed tentative plans so that we know which direction we may go depending on the recommendation and the timeline," Lyons said.
The board will receive further updates at the November board meeting, Lyons said.
