A committee working with Plano ISD has recommended closing four schools as the district's enrollment declines. Plano ISD says enrollment peaked with 55,659 students in the 2011-2012 school year and has since dropped to 47,909 this year.
Plano ISD forecasts enrollment to continue dropping to 44,151 students by the 2028-2029 school year, which would leave 21,579 open seats.
"First, we analyzed the data to ensure we could maintain the integrity of the feeder patterns as this would be the least impactful to students and families," says Kelle Marsalis, president of the Plano Chamber of Commerce and member of the committee.
The committee recommended closing four schools: Davis Elementary, Forman Elementary, Armstrong Middle and Carpenter Middle Schools.
"We examined all 44 elementary schools and all 13 middle schools through the lens of efficiency," says Marshall Jackson, who co-chaired the committee.
Jackson says they found schools in the central and eastern part of the city had the biggest drops in enrollment. He says they also considered the age as well as repair and maintenance costs of each school.
The school board has not yet acted on the committee's recommendations. The board will meet again June 25, and any changes would take effect in the 2025-2026 school year.
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