Pittsburgh Public Schools board members gathered Tuesday night to get more answers about the proposed school closure plan.The meeting focused on providing additional information board members had requested as they consider the district’s “Future Ready Facilities Plan.” The superintendent joined remotely and answered questions over Zoom. Neither the superintendent nor the school board president attended in person.District leaders defended the proposal, saying it was shaped by community input and data.“The plan that we do have was developed with significant community input,” said Ebony Pugh with Pittsburgh Public Schools. “We made changes along the way, and we can even with the last iteration, we made some updates and edits. We feel like we’ve put together a very, a solid plan with, again, with input and a data analysis that supports the decisions that we are making.”The plan proposes reconfiguring the district and closing several schools, including the Student Achievement Center, Friendship, Fulton, Manchester, Miller, Morrow, Schiller, Spring Hill and Woolslair. The goal is to save more than $100 million and create a more equitable experience for students.School board Vice President Tracey Reed said parts of the plan are beneficial.“There are bones in the plan that are just good practice, that, that help will help to move the district in the direction that we need to go,” Reed said.The board previously voted down the plan in November in a 6-3 vote, citing the need for more time. With a slightly different board makeup this year, members decided to revisit the proposal in February.Reed said Tuesday’s meeting helped answer outstanding questions.“I’ve gotten all the information that I need,” she said.The presentation aimed to clarify K-12 pathways, building enrollment, programming, transportation plans and financial comparisons.“I think the most important answer that we got revolved around what we were going to do to staff the changes that needed to be made,” Reed said. “That there was, you know, we’re going to have project managers, we’re going to look for deputy superintendent. Those are really important. There was also attention paid to the executive coaching and capacity building.”Some minor updates were included in the latest version of the plan, such as adding pre-K classrooms to the Allegheny Annex and switching to open enrollment.The school board is expected to vote on the proposal in May. If approved, the earliest closures would begin in the 2027-28 school year.
PITTSBURGH —
Pittsburgh Public Schools board members gathered Tuesday night to get more answers about the proposed school closure plan.
The meeting focused on providing additional information board members had requested as they consider the district’s “Future Ready Facilities Plan.” The superintendent joined remotely and answered questions over Zoom. Neither the superintendent nor the school board president attended in person.
District leaders defended the proposal, saying it was shaped by community input and data.
“The plan that we do have was developed with significant community input,” said Ebony Pugh with Pittsburgh Public Schools. “We made changes along the way, and we can even with the last iteration, we made some updates and edits. We feel like we’ve put together a very, a solid plan with, again, with input and a data analysis that supports the decisions that we are making.”
The plan proposes reconfiguring the district and closing several schools, including the Student Achievement Center, Friendship, Fulton, Manchester, Miller, Morrow, Schiller, Spring Hill and Woolslair. The goal is to save more than $100 million and create a more equitable experience for students.
School board Vice President Tracey Reed said parts of the plan are beneficial.
“There are bones in the plan that are just good practice, that, that help will help to move the district in the direction that we need to go,” Reed said.
The board previously voted down the plan in November in a 6-3 vote, citing the need for more time. With a slightly different board makeup this year, members decided to revisit the proposal in February.
Reed said Tuesday’s meeting helped answer outstanding questions.
“I’ve gotten all the information that I need,” she said.
The presentation aimed to clarify K-12 pathways, building enrollment, programming, transportation plans and financial comparisons.
“I think the most important answer that we got revolved around what we were going to do to staff the changes that needed to be made,” Reed said. “That there was, you know, we’re going to have project managers, we’re going to look for deputy superintendent. Those are really important. There was also attention paid to the executive coaching and capacity building.”
Some minor updates were included in the latest version of the plan, such as adding pre-K classrooms to the Allegheny Annex and switching to open enrollment.
The school board is expected to vote on the proposal in May. If approved, the earliest closures would begin in the 2027-28 school year.