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Phoenix Elementary School District considering closing two schools

The district says, like many, they have been dealing with declining enrollment for years
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PHOENIX — Families in the Phoenix Elementary School District could see two of their schools close by the end of the school year.

The district is considering closing Dunbar Elementary and students there would move to Bethune. The district is also considering closing Heard and students would move to Capitol.

Officials say bus transportation would be made available to impacted students.

“Heard is a part of the family,” parent Angelica Luna said. “They are trying to transfer our students to capitol where the crime violence is very, very high…The safety for our children is the main concern right now.”

The district says, like many, they have been dealing with declining enrollment for years. In part, they say it's because of lower birth rates and also because fewer people are living in the downtown area with the higher cost of living.

The district is 153 years old.

In an online video message to parents, the district's superintendent Dr. Deborah Gonzalez said a serious budget deficit has led them to take some hard actions.

"So that the next 153 years do not have to be a time where we worry about finances, but instead we worry about how many children we're able to serve," Gonzalez said.

Dunbar Principal Nadine Gofonia said she’s concerned about the staff and families that call the school a second home.

However, she supports the proposal in an effort to keep the same level of education across the district.

“We are really dedicated to taking care of the people in the schools as well as the families and the kids,” Gofonia said. “Combining some of the schools we can make resources go further and then I think the vision is to grow, grow back up in our enrollment and build the district back up.”

The district is holding the following public meetings:

  • Thursday, February 13th at 5:15 p.m. (Heard, 2301 W. Thomas Rd.)
  • Saturday, February 22nd at 10:00 a.m. (Capitol, 330 N. 16th Ave.)
  • Tuesday, February 25th at 5:15 p.m. (Dunbar, 707 W. Grant St.)

ABC15 has reported extensively on plans involving local school closures and staffing changes. See some of our recent reporting below: