Shawnee Mission School District tables East Antioch Elementary closure, pauses boundary work

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East Antioch Elementary School parents are celebrating after the Shawnee Mission School District tabled a recommendation to close the school.

Following a Board of Education meeting Monday, the district confirmed it will cancel a series of public input sessions on elementary boundary considerations for the 2027-28 school year and table a recommendation to close East Antioch for the 2031-32 school year.

"It is encouraging to know that at least we've been heard, at least our voices have been used for good," said Lee Bates, an East Antioch parent.

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The district announced in August that the school could close, citing declining enrollment, financial obstacles, aging buildings and an ongoing boundary study. Parents responded by flooding the neighborhood with "Save East Antioch" signs and organizing to push back against the potential closure.

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East Antioch PTA President Barnett Cardin said the pace of the process played a big part.

"They knew the timeline was ambitious, and I think ultimately that's what forced the board's hand to say, this is moving too fast," Cardin said.

Cardin said the pause will create a more transparent process going forward.

"The boundary process will kind of go back to square one. We'll start over, and they will come up with a different set of guidelines and move forward from there," Cardin said.

A Strategic Plan Action Team will revisit a recommended list of facilities needs and is scheduled to present to the Board of Education on Oct. 12.

Parent Bethany Coon, who first raised concerns about the potential closure last month, said the school has deep roots in the community.

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"We have multi-generational families. We have multi-generational teachers," Coon said.

Bates echoed that sentiment, describing the school as central to the neighborhood's identity.

"The one thing that has unified us above all of the crazy that we're living through right now is saving a school in a community that happens to be the heart of this community," Bates said.

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Coon said parents are glad the process will leave more options on the table.

"It was really heartening to see that no matter how this process shakes out in the end, we're going to feel like they've done their due diligence, considered every option and heard feedback," Coon said.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

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