Olathe Families United launch '6100 Voices' campaign over planned school closures

OLATHE, Kan. — KSHB 41 reporter Olivia Acree covers portions of Johnson County, Kansas, including Olathe and Lenexa. Share your story idea with Olivia.

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A group of Olathe families is organizing an effort to challenge the school district’s decision to close six schools. Olathe Families United is calling its effort the “6,100 Voices” campaign.

The group hopes to collect 6,100 signatures, the number it says is needed to trigger a review of the closures by the Kansas State Board of Education.

Families involved in the campaign say they want a voice in decisions that will affect students and parents, including new school boundaries, transportation and class sizes.

Vashti Colon Echevarria, an Olathe parent involved with the group, said she is uncertain how much impact the review process will have because the state board’s role is advisory.

KSHB

“The only thing that I guess disappoints me about that process is that it is advisory only, and the Olathe board can still go ahead and choose what they want to do,” Colon Echevarria said.

The families have 45 days to collect the required signatures while the district continues working on plans to redraw school boundaries.

The district’s goal is to have new boundaries established by January 2027.
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