Editor's note: This story was updated on Feb. 11 at 10:50 p.m. to reflect updates made to the Feb. 16 special school board meeting, and provide information regarding a second special-called meeting on Feb. 17. The district called the Feb. 17 meeting to comply with the Texas Government Code, according to a Facebook post by Judson ISD Board President Monica Ryan.
Judson ISD has plans to close four schools in the 2026-27 school year to combat a $37 million budget shortfall.
In a 6-1 vote, the JISD board of trustees voted to close one middle school and three elementary schools during a special meeting Feb. 9. Trustees voted to approve Scenario 3, but will choose which campuses to close at another special meeting. Trustee José Macias Jr. was the single dissenting vote.
What you need to know
Four school-closure scenarios were presented to trustees.
Scenario 1 was to close one elementary and one middle school, which would have less of an impact on the community and give the district time to assess growth trends. However, Scenario 1 would mean the district would need to close more schools in another one to two years, redraw district boundaries and leave the district with nine underutilized elementary schools, according to the presentation given to the board.
Scenario 2 was to close two elementary schools and one middle school, reducing underutilization in two feeder patterns and giving the district time to assess growth trends. Negative impacts identified in Scenario 2 were similar to those in Scenario 1, with the addition of high staffing cuts, according to the presentation.
Scenario 3 proposed closing three elementary schools and one middle school, which would reduce staffing cuts.
“We have three feeder patterns, so you can easily close one elementary school in each feeder pattern. It’ll make it easier to do an equal distribution of consolidation. It’ll also address the underutilization that exists in every feeder pattern that we have,” interim Superintendent Mary Duhart-Toppen said.
But Scenario 3 would impact long-term enrollment needs and district boundaries significantly, Duhart-Toppen said.
“We’re going to have to move boundaries for pretty much almost every school in the district if we do this [Scenario 3],” Duhart-Toppen said. “But I truly feel like if you’re going to move boundaries, you’re going to do it one time and do it right the first time.”
Scenario 3 would also impact noninstructional spaces, like classrooms used for offices and small-group instruction at campuses. This scenario would also impact school bus routes.
Scenario 4 proposes closing four elementary schools and one middle school, which would have the greatest impact on campus efficiency by addressing the underutilization of all campuses with less than 60% utilization, according to the presentation.
Scenario 4 would also increase transportation needs on the district's north side, Duhart-Toppen said.
What trustees are saying
Board President Monica Ryan said she preferred Scenario 3, emphasizing that her goal was to stabilize the district for three to five years.
“The magic of Judson is in the people, it’s not in the bricks,” Ryan said. “By redrawing our district, we have a chance to kind of regain that equity and make sure we’re doing the best for all of our kids across the entire district and for our staff too.”
Board Vice President Amanda Poteet and trustee Stephanie Jones also said they leaned toward Scenario 3.
Trustee Suzanne Kenoyer said scenarios 2 and 3 made sense based on projections from Zonda, the firm contracted by the district to provide demographic reports and enrollment projections. Kenoyer said she thought Scenario 4 was “too much.”
“I don’t want to see our children being bounced from school to school, year after year,” Kenoyer said.
Macias said Scenario 1 was “the strongest one” because closing two schools had a year-one and year-two phased approach.
“My concern is that we pretty much have a very fractured community, and school consolidation will continue to bleed into that fracture,” Macias said. “We have to be cautious, we have to be strategic, and we don’t need to rush.”
Trustee Laura Stanford said she came in looking at Scenario 2 and would consider Scenario 3.
What’s next
The board will meet again Saturday, Feb. 14, at 9 a.m. to review the schools being considered for consolidation, which are as follows, according to the posted agenda for another special meeting Feb. 16 at 5:30 p.m.
- Kitty Hawk Middle School
- JSTEM Academy
- Judson Middle School
- Park Village Blended Learning Academy
- Ed Franz Leadership Academy
- Woodlake Elementary
- Fine Arts Academy at Olympia Elementary
- Spring Meadows Elementary/Spring Meadows College Prep
There will only be three elementary schools selected out of the five listed above, according to the posted agenda for the Feb. 16 special meeting.
The update
The agenda posted for the Feb. 16 special meeting incorrectly listed the item regarding the three elementary school closures as "discussion" only and did not include action language. Due to Texas Government Code requirements regarding posted agenda language, the board cannot vote on that item at the Feb. 16 meeting. As a result, the district has scheduled another special meeting Feb. 17 at 5 p.m., according to a Facebook post from Ryan.
The Feb. 17 agenda has been posted with the updated action language, and the board is expected to vote on the closure of the three elementary schools at that meeting, the post states.
Kitty Hawk Middle School refers to the school building, and JSTEM is a program of study in which students are enrolled. There are no proposed decisions regarding the JSTEM program itself—only the facility where it currently resides, Ryan's post states.
