Olathe school district to announce closure and consolidation recommendations Thursday night

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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Olathe Public Schools is set to announce school closure and consolidation recommendations Thursday night as the school district continues to address years of declining enrollment.

A task force will present its closure and boundary change recommendations to the school board at a meeting beginning at 5:45 p.m. Thursday.

School closures were already part of Bond 2026, which passed in the spring, but Thursday's announcement will include additional closures and consolidations beyond what voters approved.

Enrollment data shows the district's smallest elementary schools in 2025 were Westview with 144 students, Northview with 199 students and Green Springs with 217 students. Overall elementary enrollment fell from more than 14,000 to just over 12,600 students over the past decade. Middle school enrollment has also declined by 350 students.

Olathe Public Schools

Superintendent Brent Yeager addressed the issue in a message to families before the school year started.

"We don't have enough students to fulfill the number of spaces that we have in our schools. And so for us to be good stewards of the tax dollars that we're responsible for, we have to make those changes," Yeager said.

Olathe Public Schools

Despite that message, parents say they still have questions.

"What do you mean we're closing schools, um, where are all these kiddos going to go? Just like questions that they're valid for asking," Olathe parent Samantha Bashaw said.

I will continue to look at how declining enrollment and lack of funding are challenging schools in Johnson County. If there is anything you want me to find out, email johnsoncounty@kshb.com.

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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