TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Leon County School Board District 1 Member Alva Smith is urging her colleagues to consider the consolidation of low-capacity schools in an effort to reduce costs and boost teacher pay.
- Smith is pushing for school consolidation to achieve efficiency, hoping to free up an estimated $10 million in funding and increase teacher salaries by $5,000.
- Leon Classroom Teachers' Association President Scott Mazur argues that conversations about consolidation are a result of Florida's school choice policies.
- Watch the video to hear more about what consolidation could look like at schools.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
In an effort to raise teacher salaries and cut costs for the district, District 1 School Board Member Alva Smith is urging Leon County School Board members to be more efficient, which she believes could be achieved through school consolidation of low-capacity schools.
“What does consolidation look like to you?” ABC 27 asked.
“That's what we want staff to recommend to us,” Smith said. “There are schools that are bringing in local homegrown pre-K, K through 5, K through 3 church schools…some that are using facilities for workforce training programs... some schools consolidate, close a facility, and then actually turn that facility into workforce housing.”
She says district population has steadied at about 32,000 over the past 15 years.
But some schools like Fort Braden or Killearn Lakes Elementary have seen decreases in student population.
Smith wants the consolidation to free up about $10 million, which could give teachers up to $5000 in additional pay.
“If we stay in the 40s…we're going to lose those young graduates that are looking for a better salary,” she said.
ABC 27 first reported about Leon County Schools’ budget cuts in July, and earlier this month, the district and teachers’ union tentatively agreed to increase salaries by $40 more per check.
President of Leon Classroom Teachers’ Association Scott Mazur was at the center of those conversations.
He says that the district has to be proactive and explore its options.
But like Smith says, talks of school consolidation is a response to the state’s implementation of school choice.
“If we were funded properly, if we didn't have this voucher scam that's out there, then we would have the dollars that are needed for our public schools,” he said.
Governor Ron DeSantis signed school choice into law in 2023, which allows students to use public funds to attend any school of their choice.
In January, he announced that more than 500,000 students were participating in school choice, calling the program a success.
The district also wants to act before seeing impacts of from the School of Hope program, a state charter school program.
The Florida Department of Education created the program in 2017 to serve students from low-performing schools.
A recent update signed into law expands the program, giving those programs permission to “co-locate with another school in a public school facility.”
Concerns still about consolidation remain, though, like impacts to zoning, potentially losing neighborhood schools, and potential relocation of teachers.
“The concerns really come down to the fact that we're going to have to make some tough choices because of the choices of the governor and the state legislature,” Mazur said.
There isn’t a timeline yet when these changes may happen as the board considers consolidation.
But Smith says the district is losing funding quickly.
During a school board meeting on Tuesday, Superintendent Rocky Hanna told board members he wanted to meet individually with board members to discuss ideas for consolidation, including ways they reduce costs, increase revenue, and even potential partnerships with local programs.
“Any conversations along those lines, on both sides, need to be done thoughtful, intentional, and to ensure they’re impactful, whether we’re having discussions of building new schools or we’re having discussions of closing schools,” Hanna said at the meeting.
Some board members hope to discuss the topic again during the district’s annual retreat early next.
Want to see more local news? Visit the WTXL ABC 27 Website.
Stay in touch with us anywhere, anytime.
