KSHB 41 reporter Charlie Keegan covers politics in Kansas, Missouri and at the local level. Share your story idea with Charlie.
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This year alone leaders at the Hickman Mills and Leavenworth school districts announced school closures. Voters in Olathe will decide whether to advance a plan that includes consolidating some school buildings.
The experts who spoke to KSHB 41 News about this apparent trend in school closings pointed to national birth rates.
The U.S. Census bureau shows the number of births per 1,000 women went from 54.9 in 2006 to 51.5 in 2023.
A study from the Brookings Institution states there will be 2.4 million fewer students in public schools in the next decade compared to last. Missouri is expected to see a 3.5% drop. Kansas will see an almost 7% drop.
“Is this what’s best for kids,” asked Edgar Palacios, who runs the Latinx Education Collaborative.
His goal is to get more parents engaged in public education, especially since parents have more choices where to send their children: charter schools, private schools, homeschool, and voucher programs.
“That leads to situations when schools and districts have to make decisions on how they move forward with limited dollars,” Palacios explained.
Jacklynn Walters chose to homeschool her four kids. Now she’s part of Midwest Parent Educators, which supports homeschoolers.
She said interest in homeschooling has remained high since a surge around the COVID-19 pandemic. She said many parents want to have more control in their children’s education.
“Maybe I need to bring my child home and address maybe a special learning disability, or a need that they have, or a style of learning that they need specifically to them,” Walters explained.
Palacios expects this trend of school building closures to continue. He said there are chances closing buildings will allow districts to focus on improving curriculum instead of spending on maintaining buildings.
“Sometimes you can’t avoid a building closure, but it can turn into an incredible opportunity,” he said.
The president and CEO of SchoolSmartKC weighed in on the issue as well.
"School closures are rarely about performance. They are about enrollment," said Dr. Angelique Nedved. "We are in a period where districts must align buildings to enrollment reality. The real question is how we protect student outcomes while rightsizing infrastructure."
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