Several people spoke Monday at the Wichita Board of Education meeting to urge board members not to move forward with a plan to close four elementary schools.
District administrators are recommending closing four elementary schools as soon as next spring: L’Ouverture, OK, Pleasant Valley and Woodland. They say the buildings are deteriorating due to age and have become too costly to repair.
But many who spoke in public forum on Monday say they fear losing their neighborhood schools. They say having schools nearby means shorter commutes, a stronger sense of community and easier access to school events for students and families.
Aaron Andrews is a father whose kids go to OK Elementary, near 13th and West. He presented board members with a petition against the proposed closings, which he says has between 600 and 700 signatures…