Bibb elementary school to close its doors in fall 2021

The Bibb County Board of Education has voted to close Brookdale Elementary. During a meeting Thursday, board members unanimously approved a plan that calls for the school to be closed in fall 2021 and a new Riley Elementary to be built.

The second of two required public hearing was held prior to the committee meeting. The first hearing was at Brookdale on Jan. 4.

The district's decision to close the school is part of its five-year facilities plan that will be submitted to the Georgia Department of Education. Board members could have elected to close either Brookdale, Riley or L.H. Williams elementary schools. Superintendent Curtis Jones recommended the Brookdale option during the Dec. 14 board meeting.

“When I got (to Brookdale), it was the best-kept secret," Debra Shipp, a former teacher at Brookdale Elementary, said during the public hearing. "It’s almost like taking their homes away from them. … Please don’t take away the nest when the eggs are being hatched.”

The plan will combine the Brookdale and Riley attendance zones. Both Brookdale and Riley students will be housed at Brookdale during the construction of the new Riley building, slated to happen during the 2020-21 school year.

The school closure addresses underutilized facilities, high operating costs and declining student enrollment in the district. The district is predicted to lose about 500 students and have an excess of 91 classrooms in its elementary schools by the year 2022, according to a report from the district. Brookdale is using 56 percent its classroom space and has the highest operating cost of any school in the district.

If attendance projections don't unfold as expected, the board could revisit the facilities plan later and decide not to close Brookdale, Jones said. Daryl Morton, outgoing board president, said he was willing to support the superintendent in moving forward in the process because of his commitment to reconsider the decision if the numbers change.

"Whenever you decide to close a school, it's a difficult time for any community," Jones said. "I believe that if we actually experience a decline in enrollment that we will be able to attract more students (at the new Riley), and we'll be able to retain most of the teachers that are currently employed with us."

In February, a survey team from the state Department of Education will walk through the Bibb facilities that the board wants to remain in operation or close. The team can make a recommendation to the board if it’s not in agreement with the board’s facilities proposal, but that doesn’t typically happen, said Jason Daniel, executive director of Capital Programs for the district.

If all goes according to plan, board members will approve and adopt the full five-year facilities plan at the Feb. 12 meeting and submit it to the state in March.

This story was originally published January 18, 2018 at 8:18 PM with the headline "Bibb elementary school to close its doors in fall 2021."