More than 20 schools in Dallas may close due to low enrollment

Article by Ken Holland. 
The Dallas Independent School District planned to discuss its proposal to eliminate or consolidate 22 schools due to enrollment declines this week, according to the Dallas Morning-News.
The Morning-News reports enrollment in the DISD at 157,000, down from a high of 180,000 a few decades ago. Experts say much of this decline is due to an increase in children attending charter schools.
If the proposal is accepted, 17 elementary schools would be closed and five more would be consolidated into two schools. Also, according to the Morning-News, “Nolan Estes Plaza, where alternative schooling and other district operations are located, would close, with those programs moving to another site. The IDEA at James W. Fannin transformation high school would move to North Dallas High, operating separately but sharing the campus.”
The schools that would be closed under this plan, according to the Morning-News, are “Ireland, Rosemont, Jones, Twain, Hall, Dunbar, Gooch, Reilly, Pershing, Urban Park, Miller, Field, Webster, Carr, Oliver, Milam, and Holland.” Reagan, Hogg, and Peeler elementary schools would be replaced by one school on one of those sites; and Pease and Bushman would be similarly consolidated. Fifteen of these schools are south of I-30, the area of Dallas that has seen the highest level of enrollment loss due to charter schools.
DISD is also considering a bond in 2021 for school improvements. According to the Morning-News, 99 of the district’s 221 campuses are more than 60 years old. The DISD plan calls for $6 million for “campus replacements, renovations, security upgrades, technology and other needs.”