BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN).....Is the Buffalo School Board about to do a 180 and find a new location for its acclaimed Leonardo DaVinci High School.
Reading between the lines of her brief comments regarding DaVinci High School, interim Superintendent Dr. Ebony Prophet-Bullock pledged to meet with DaVinci supporters - within the next week - to begin discussions about where, or if, the high school should relocate to a new building,
Outside of agreeing to meet with DaVinci backers, Prophet-Bullock made no other promises.
"We'd like to make it work for DaVinci," Prophet-Bullock said.
Prophet-Bullock made her promise after she and school boards heard nearly one hour of comments from a roll call of DaVinci supporters - all of whom pleaded with the board to find a new location for the high school.
Speakers included school principal Leslie Potempa, teachers, parents and students along with other Buffalo residents.
All had the same message: Please find a new site for the school.
"This is a generational investment," said Michelle Schroeder, a DaVinci teacher.
For most of its life, DaVinci was located on the D'Youville University campus - affording its students a taste of collegiate life to go along with their high school education.
It worked and worked well, all side.
But, three years - in a cost savings move, DiVinci and its 400-plus student body moved to the former School 8 building on East Utica Street.
School 8, constructed in 1926, was an aging building in poor physical shape and it lacked such facilities as a high school-level library, no auditorium and a limited gym. It was also saddled with an antiquated HVAC system.
Supporters complained that because of the building's age and limited space, even basic high school experiences like pep rallies or talent shows could not be staged due to School 8's physical condition.
"I feel disappointed and cheated," said Chanel Sweat, a DaVinci senior.
DaVinci, academically, is design to make its students college-ready.
The school has a graduation rate that, annually, lands between 95% and 100%, Schroeder said.
DaVinci has won numerous local, state and national educational awards.
"DaVinci has become a beacon," Schroeder said.
In late 2024, it was announced that DaVinci would move to Buckham Hall on the Buffalo State University campus. The proposed move had supporters excited.
"We had certain expectations," Sweat said.
But, this spring, then-Superintendent Dr. Pascal Mubemga scuttled those plans as development costs rose from $28 million to $60 million.
Plans were dropped as the district is facing a potential $60 million budget shortfall.
Most of the relocation costs would have covered through state and federal programs.
Supporters found out about the change in plans from media reports, something that irked them and added another layer of mistrust between the school board and the general public including DaVinci backers.
"We have important questions and need answers," Potempa said. "We shouldn't be reading about these changes through the media. It undermines any trust we have in you (the board)."
Any location changes won't happen overnight.
Realistically, it may take as long as three years - or even longer - to make the locational shift.
That timeline leaves students feeling cheated.
"I feel like we were robbed," said Jordawn Livingston, a senior.
Prophet-Bullock wants to meet with DiVinci supporters next week
Prophet-Bullock wants to meet with DiVinci supporters next week
