Fort Worth ISD will consider in July renovations on two middle schools that it previously eyed as part of a campus closure and merger plan.
The school board tabled two separate contracts for preconstruction services at McLean Middle School and McLean Sixth Grade Center. Trustee Michael Ryan motioned to table both contracts after he pulled them from the consent agenda, a list of items considered routine that can be approved in one motion.
The June 25 votes both were 6-2, with trustees Anne Darr and Anael Luebanos dissenting and trustee Quinton Phillips absent.
Ryan told administrators the school board should have a presentation exploring the combination of McLean Middle School and McLean Sixth Grade Center in July.
“I’d like to see what’s the most cost effective for the district,” Ryan said.
The items trustees tabled would have allowed Superintendent Angélica Ramsey to negotiate two contracts for a construction manager at risk, an outside firm that analyzes prices and provides a guaranteed maximum price for projects. Ramsey will negotiate with Hill & Wilkinson General Contractors, the firm administration determined would provide the best value, for both projects.
Each contract is expected to be no more than $30,000, according to Fort Worth ISD documents. The district plans to use its $1.2 billion bond that voters narrowly approved in 2021 to fund the contracts, if trustees approve.
The district previously included McLean Middle School and McLean Sixth Grade Center as part of a proposal addressing declining enrollment and rethinking the 2021 bond.
Plans showed McLean Sixth Grade Center and Daggett Middle School closing and students moving to a newly constructed McLean Middle School in the 2027-28 academic year. The three schools feed into Paschal High School.
Across Fort Worth ISD, middle schools require $130 million in deferred maintenance needs.
The school board scrapped the closure plan in May after community members voiced concerns.
“I don’t think the answer is to move three schools into one,” parent Chris Kamo, who has six kids in the Paschal High School pyramid, said in April. “This isn’t addressing the elephant in the room: the cause for declining enrollment.”
The district has lost around 1 in 5 students since 2016. The district had 70,675 students in fall 2023.
On average, the district has lost 2,365 students annually starting with the 2017-18 school year. Changing demographics, school choice and mistrust have contributed to Fort Worth ISD’s shrinking enrollment, experts said.
Although the district is moving forward with renovations, administrators have said middle schools previously considered for closure may be part of a future round of campus shutters.
Administrators are waiting for the results of a study examining enrollment and buildings.
The school board’s next meeting is scheduled for July 23.
Editor’s note: This story was updated June 27, 2024, to accurately reflect the school board’s decision on the renovation contracts.
Jacob Sanchez is a senior education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at jacob.sanchez@fortworthreport.org or @_jacob_sanchez. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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