SAN ANTONIO — North East Independent School District could face another round of difficult decisions as district leaders begin looking at 16 campuses with low enrollment, underused buildings and higher-than-average costs per student.
During a board discussion, district officials identified 16 campuses that currently meet three criteria established last spring: enrollment below 450 students, building utilization below 60% and a cost per student at least 5% higher than the district average.
The campuses identified are Castle Hills, Colonial Hills, Dellview, Harmony Hills, Northwood, Oak Grove, Ridgeview, Serna, Regency Place, Montgomery, Northern Hills, Redland Oaks, Oak Meadow, Wetmore, Canyon Ridge and Las Lomas.
The numbers vary significantly from campus to campus.
Castle Hills has 411 students and a cost of $10,474 per student, 5.5% above the district average. At the other end of the spectrum, Redland Oaks has 330 students and costs $17,648 per student — 77.8% above the district average.
Montgomery has the lowest enrollment on the list at 232 students. The campus is operating at 24% utilization and costs $14,373 per student, 44.8% above the district average.
Regency Place has 311 students and is operating at 38.3% utilization, with a cost of $14,883 per student — nearly 50% above average.
The 16 campuses and the figures presented by the district are:
North East Independent School District could face another round of difficult decisions as district leaders begin looking at 16 campuses with low enrollment, underused buildings and higher-than-average costs per student. (PHOTO: North East ISD)
District leaders stressed that the list does not mean all 16 schools will close. Rather, the campuses meet the criteria that will trigger further discussions as NEISD looks for ways to operate more efficiently.
NEISD Superintendent Anthony Jarrett warned that those conversations are coming.
There’s more tough decisions ahead of us, and it is not going to be easy decisions,” Jarrett said. “We’re going to have to start having conversations about some of these smaller campuses and the enrollment and the cost per student.
The district is currently enrolling 51,317 students, slightly above the 51,088 students projected when the budget was developed. Officials said opening NEISD to some students who live outside district boundaries helped boost that number. The district received 404 transfer applications and approved 316, or 78%.
Still, district leaders said a dramatic enrollment increase that could change the financial picture appears unlikely.
Board members also urged families and communities surrounding the schools to get involved before any recommendations are finalized.
“Please reach out to us, let your voice be heard. We’ll listen,” board president David Beyer said, adding that the decisions ahead “are not going to be easy, and it’s not going to be fun.”
The district’s efficiency committee is expected to play a role in the next phase of the process as officials examine the campuses and determine what recommendations should be brought back to the board.