What to know about the 9 proposed Green Bay School District building proposals, including closures, consolidations
Danielle DuClosGREEN BAY ― As the Green Bay School District adjusts to declining enrollment, aging buildings and a $32 million projected budget deficit, the district is looking to downsize and reduce its operational expenses.
The district hired ATSR, an architecture and building consulting firm from Minnesota, to assess the conditions of the district's 42 buildings and what it would cost to maintain them for the next three decades.
Those findings were presented in January to the School Board, and now a community task force of 26 people is working to create recommendations on how to downsize and restructure the district.
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The task force, in conjunction with ATSR, has developed nine plans for building closures, additions, redrawing school boundaries and repurposing existing buildings to accommodate different grade levels or programs.
The task force will make its final recommendations to the board in May, and the board will vote on final building decisions in June as part of the district's 10-year facility plan.
Implementation of the recommendations won't begin until after the 2023-2024 school year, according to the district's Facilities Master Plan webpage.
A building being recommended to close doesn't mean the programs housed in that building will be cut. The plans include repurposing other schools to accommodate programs that are housed in buildings that might close.
Across all nine plans, MacArthur and Wequiock elementary schools are recommended to be closed along with the District Office Building.
The district plans to send out a community survey for public input next week. The building plans will change and be narrowed down as the task force continues its work and ATSR takes the survey results under consideration.
To view plans in more detail, including where students who attend schools that might close will go, click here.
Here are the main takeaways from each plan:
Plan 1: Minimal new construction
Cost: $451,901,000
Under this plan, seven school buildings would close with students and programs in those buildings moving into other schools. Elmore, Langlade, Leonardo, MacArthur, Minoka Hill, the NEW School of Innovation, Tank, Washington, Wequiock, and the District Office Building would close.
Another seven schools would be repurposed to accommodate different grade levels or programs:
- Doty Elementary would become a K-8 school;
- Franklin Middle would become an elementary;
- Keller Elementary would house the NEW School of Innovation program;
- Lincoln Elementary would become an alternate school, replacing Minoka Hill;
- McAuliffe Elementary would become a K-8;
- Webster Elementary would become a gifted school;
- West High would become a middle school and house the district headquarters.
Nineteen schools would get additions in the form of more classrooms, secure entry upgrades and/or a gym.
Plan 2: A new high school
Cost: $469,632,500
The main component of this plan is the construction of a new high school. Despite the proposed new construction, only three high schools would operate in the district instead of the current four.
West High would be repurposed as a middle school with its students moving to Southwest High. Southwest would get more classrooms to handle the additional students.
Then East High School would become a middle school and gifted school. East High students would move to Preble and Preble students would move into the new high school.
Nine school buildings would close, including the District Office Building, Beaumont, Doty, Franklin, Leonardo, MacArthur, Nicolet, Tank and Wequiock.
These schools would be repurposed to accommodate different grade levels or programs:
- East High would become a middle and gifted school;
- Washington Middle would become the district headquarters;
- West High would become a middle school.
Sixteen schools would get additions in the form of more classrooms, secure entry upgrades and/or a gym.
Plan 3: Four schools repurposed as K-8s; West closes
Cost: $477,840,000
This plan has 12 school buildings closing, including the District Office Building, Beaumont, Elmore, Langlade, Leonardo, Lincoln, MacArthur, the NEW School of Innovation, Tank, Webster, Wequiock and West.
These schools would be repurposed to accommodate different grade levels or programs:
- Doty Elementary would become a K-8;
- Franklin Middle would become a K-8;
- Kennedy Elementary would become a K-8;
- Nicolet Elementary would house the gifted program;
- Washington Middle would become the district headquarters;
- Wilder Elementary would become a K-8.
Fourteen schools would get additions in the form of more classrooms, secure entry upgrades and/or a gym.
Plan 4: Four schools repurposed as K-8s; West becomes a middle school
Cost: $431,432,500
Thirteen school buildings would close under this plan: Beaumont, the District Office Building, Elmore, Jackson, Langlade, Leonardo, Lincoln, MacArthur, the NEW School of Innovation, Nicolet, Tank, Webster and Wequiock.
These schools would be repurposed to accommodate different grade levels or programs:
- Doty Elementary would become a K-8;
- Franklin Middle would become a K-8;
- Lombardi Middle would become a K-8;
- McAuliffe Elementary would become a K-8;
- Washington Middle would become the district headquarters;
- West High would become a middle and gifted school.
Seventeen schools would get additions in the form of more classrooms, secure entry upgrades and/or a gym.
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Plan 5: Three schools repurposed as K-8s; West as a K-12
Cost: $503,556,000
Eleven school buildings would close: the District Office Building, Elmore, Jackson, Langlade, MacArthur, Minoka Hill, the NEW School of Innovation, Sullivan, Tank, Washington and Wequiock.
These schools would be repurposed to accommodate different grade levels or programs:
- Beaumont Elementary would become the district headquarters;
- Doty Elementary would become a K-8;
- Franklin Middle School would become an elementary;
- Keller Elementary would house the NEW School of Innovation;
- Kennedy Elementary would become a K-8;
- Lincoln Elementary would replace Minoka Hill as an alternative school;
- McAuliffe Elementary would become a K-8;
- West High would become a K-12 school, home to the International Baccalaureate program.
Twenty schools would get additions in the form of more classrooms, secure entry upgrades and/or a gym.
Plan 6: New elementary on the west side
Cost: $496,643,500
This plan and Plan 7 are unique from the others because they propose a new elementary school be built on the west side of the Fox River. Students from Kennedy and MacArthur elementary schools, which would close, would go to the new elementary school.
The NEW School of Innovation building also would close and be filtered into Keller Elementary. Students at Keller would then also attend the new west side elementary.
Eleven school buildings would close under this plan, including the District Office Building: Doty, Jackson, Kennedy, Leonardo, MacArthur, Minoka Hill, the NEW School of Innovation, Tank, Washington and Wequiock.
These schools would be repurposed to accommodate different grade levels or programs:
- Franklin Middle would become an elementary;
- Keller Elementary would house the NEW School of Innovation;
- McAuliffe Elementary would become a K-8;
- Webster Elementary would become a gifted school;
- West High would become a middle school and house the district headquarters.
Twenty schools would get additions in the form of more classrooms, secure entry upgrades and/or a gym.
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Plan 7: New elementary on the west side; West High as a 6-12
Cost: $468,167,000
This plan has West High becoming a 6-12 school and home to the district's headquarters.
Like Plan 6, this plan would add a new elementary school on the west side. Also as in Plan 6, kids at MacArthur and Kennedy Elementary Schools would go to the new school since those would close.
Kids from Keller Elementary would also feed into the new elementary school since the NEW School of Innovation would be in the Keller building.
Ten school buildings would close in this plan: the District Office Building, Doty, Jackson, Kennedy, Leonardo, MacArthur, the NEW School of Innovation, Tank, Washington and Wequiock.
These schools would be repurposed to accommodate different grade levels or programs:
- Franklin Middle would become a K-8;
- Keller Elementary would house the NEW School of Innovation;
- Langlade Elementary would become a K-8;
- McAuliffe Elementary would become a K-8;
- Webster Elementary would become the gifted school;
- West High would become a 6-12 and home to the district's headquarters.
Eighteen schools would get additions in the form of more classrooms, secure entry upgrades and/or a gym.
Plan 8: New west-side elementary; Lombardi as K-8
Cost: $492,263,000
There is also a new elementary on the west side in this plan and Lombardi Middle School would become a K-8.
Twelve schools would close under this plan: the District Office Building, Doty, Jackson, Keller, Kennedy, Leonardo, MacArthur, Minoka Hill, the NEW School of Innovation, Tank, Washington and Wequiock.
These schools would be repurposed to accommodate different grade levels or programs:
- Franklin Middle would become a K-8;
- King Elementary would house the NEW School of Innovation;
- Langlade Elementary would become a K-8;
- Lombardi Middle School would become a K-8;
- McAuliffe Elementary would become a K-8;
- Webster Elementary would become the gifted school;
- West High would become a middle school and home to the district headquarters.
Seventeen schools would get additions in the form of more classrooms, secure entry upgrades and/or a gym.
Plan 9: New west-side elementary; 4 high schools
Cost: $476,185,000
This plan still keeps the addition of an elementary on the west side and keeps West as a high school.
Eleven schools would close under this plan: the District Office Building, Doty, Keller, Kennedy, Leonardo, MacArthur, Minoka Hill, the NEW School of Innovation, Tank, Washington and Wequiock.
These schools would be repurposed to accommodate different grade levels or programs:
- King Elementary would house the NEW School of Innovation;
- Langlade Elementary would become a K-8;
- Lombardi Middle would become a K-8;
- McAuliffe Elementary would become a K-8;
- Webster Elementary would house a gifted school.
Eighteen schools would get additions in the form of more classrooms, secure entry upgrades and/or a gym.
Danielle DuClos is a Report for America corps member who covers K-12 education for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at dduclos@gannett.com. Follow on Twitter @danielle_duclos. You can directly support her work with a tax-deductible donation at GreenBayPressGazette.com/RFA or by check made out to The GroundTruth Project with subject line Report for America Green Bay Press Gazette Campaign. Address: The GroundTruth Project, Lockbox Services, 9450 SW Gemini Drive, PMB 46837, Beaverton, Oregon 97008-7105.