KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Lawrence School Board will decide whether to close two elementary schools in Lawrence Public Schools USD 497 on Monday evening.
The school board will vote on a resolution to close Broken Arrow Elementary School and a resolution to close Pinckney Elementary School at a school board meeting Monday at 6 p.m.
Superintendent Dr. Anthony Lewis previously said the district plans to close three elementary schools and re-purpose one middle school in order to find the funding to raise wages. The plan could save the district over $4.7 million dollars.
"We are serious about addressing our staff wages," Lewis said. "And I'll just say it, our people are more important than buildings."
In addition to Pinckney and Broken Arrow, the district also has plans to close Woodlawn Elementary and re-purpose Liberty Memorial Central Middle School.
Some community members have responded to the potential closures by protesting outside district offices, saying they believe there's another way forward, but the district says if its serious about raising wages, closing and re-purposing schools is the only way.
