Emotions ran high at a contentious school board meeting Saturday as the San Jose Unified School District weighed a proposal to close five elementary schools at the end of the academic year.
District officials said the closures are necessary in response to a sharp decline in enrollment, but many parents and students argued the move would disproportionately harm low-income families and disrupt tight-knit school communities.
The five campuses under consideration are all Title I schools, serving a high percentage of low-income students. They are Empire Gardens Elementary, Lowell Elementary, Gardner Elementary, Canoas Elementary, and Terrell Elementary…