D.C. Public Schools Superintendent Clifford Janey said the number of schools slated to be closed in the next two years could be cut in half if negotiations with city, business and nonprofit leaders come to fruition.
For weeks, media outlets have reported the school system expects to close as many as 10 schools by this fall and as many as 30 by 2008 in a D.C. School Board mandate to eliminate 3 million square feet of excess space by fall 2008. Most of the numbers being tossed around by advocates were calculated by simply dividing the total by the average size of schools, officials said.
Janey said while he does expect a handful of schools to be closed and consolidated, eliminating “excess space” doesn’t necessarily mean closing buildings. And he says the number of schools floating around is simply premature “speculation.”
“The idea for many is that we have to subtract or add,” Janey said in an exclusive interview with The Examiner. “These are major issues we’re grappling with right now and there is a nuance here that has not been properly discussed.”
Janey said he has been in discussions with several city agencies — including library, human services and law enforcement officials — who have shown interest locating to under-enrolled school buildings. The plan fits in with Janey’s Master Education Plan, which wants to reinvent schools as the hubs of the community, he said.
Under the plan, current school buildings enrolled at just half of their capacity could share their building with public agencies and would not have to be merged with other schools, officials said.
The first list of schools expected to be affected is scheduled to be issued May 15, which must be approved by the board in June.
Speaking out
» The public hearing on facilities consolidation will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday at Bell Multicultural High School in Northwest.
