TARPON SPRINGS, Fla. — Pinellas County Schools is pausing the next round of community meetings for its “Planning for Progress” initiative as district leaders consider feedback from families about proposed changes to schools.
Superintendent Kevin Hendrick announced during this week’s school board meeting that the district will push back its second round of community meetings until after an Oct. 6 school board workshop. The delay will give board members time to discuss feedback gathered during the first round of meetings and potentially make adjustments to the proposals.
Among the families raising concerns are parents at Tarpon Springs Fundamental Elementary School.
The district has proposed closing the current Tarpon Springs Fundamental campus and moving its students to Tarpon Springs Middle School, creating a K-8 fundamental school.
Several parents said they were caught off guard by the proposal.
“We did not expect this to be a part of the Planning for Progress. A lot of us, I think all of us, were blindsided,” parent Kristen Rebimbas said.
Parents have launched an online petition opposing the current proposal and are working directly with school board members to suggest other ways the district could create a K-8 school in Tarpon Springs. They said their ultimate goal is to preserve the culture of Tarpon Springs Fundamental.
Parent Kayla Marsh said families are concerned that moving students to another campus could mean losing more than just their current school building.
“We have heard that they are saying expansion for fundamental, but what they’re actually doing is closing this school,” Marsh said. “They’re closing down our school and putting it in a different building without our teachers and staff.”
Hendrick told board members the district is listening to the concerns and ideas coming from the community.
“I genuinely appreciate the feedback from the community over the last week and a half,” Hendrick said. “There have been excellent suggestions, some very forward thinking, and some we will ultimately try to work towards.”
For now, some Tarpon Springs Fundamental parents say that response has made them more optimistic that their concerns are being heard.
“To us, it mattered enough to at least try,” Rebimbas said. “I do feel like we were heard.”
Families at other Pinellas County schools are also watching the process closely. A parent from Sunset Hills Elementary School told Spectrum Bay News 9 that while the school is not part of this round of Planning for Progress changes, families are concerned about whether it could eventually be considered underutilized and face changes in the future.
The district has not yet announced new dates for the second round of community meetings. Hendrick said those dates are expected to be announced after the Oct. 6 school board workshop.
The school board is still expected to make final decisions on the Planning for Progress proposals on Oct. 13.