As Enrollment Declines, Districts Consider Closing Schools

This Education Week piece examines the accelerating rate of school closures across the U.S., driven by population decline, outmigration from cities, and post-pandemic exit from the public system by families across districts nationwide. The author examines the fiscal challenges of operating under-enrolled schools, especially as COVID-19 relief funds expire and districts face budget shortfalls. The piece explains that closing buildings is a difficult decision that poses challenges for staff and families, as well as disrupts community access to resources. However, the author cites research that delaying closure can be equally difficult on districts and students, as budgets are stretched too thin by the burden of staffing and maintaining buildings that per-pupil funding no longer supports.