EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) has urged the El Paso Independent School District (EPISD) to delay its upcoming vote on potential school closures, arguing that such actions could harm the community more than benefit it.
“LULAC is very concerned about the potential closure of certain schools, especially in South El Paso, where predominantly low-income Hispanics live,” said Ray Mancera, LULAC National Vice President for the Southwest.
The organization sent a letter to EPISD’s Board of Trustees, outlining concerns about the proposed closure of 10 elementary schools.
The letter claims that the closures target low-income Hispanic communities.
“The challenges faced by these low-income children are much greater than the average middle income. And it’s going to be detrimental in their education,” Mancera said.
However, EPISD officials argue that consolidating schools will benefit these communities.
“From the west side, all the way through central, south, and northeast, have schools that are part of the proposal,” said Carla Gonzales, EPISD Chief of Schools.
“And by consolidating our campuses and decreasing our footprint, we’re able to bring those resources and provide more for all of our students.”
RELATED: El Paso ISD to hold more meetings before deciding on shutting down 10 schools
LULAC has requested that EPISD postpone its decision until May 2025, when the district’s equity audit is expected to be complete.
Mancera said, “Once it is finished, then people can see exactly where the resources are, where they can, certain schools that may have to be closed, so be it. But we want them to finish the equity study.”
Gonzales explained why the district could not wait.
“The purpose of the equity study is really to look at where we are doing well in terms of providing equity in our programming and our accessibility to our students,” she said. “It’s not going to give us any information that we don’t currently have in terms of the criteria that we’ve used to gauge where a consolidation, where a closure would be in the best interest of our district at this time.”
You can read the full letter sent to EPISD’s board of trustees below:
RELATED:EPISD parents express concerns as vote looms to close 10 elementary schools
The school district announced the potential school closures last month during a special board meeting.
The 10 elementary schools included in the list include:
- Hillside
- Lamar
- Newman
- Park
- Putnam
- Rivera
- Rusk
- Stanton
- Travis
- Zavala
You can watch the special board meeting from Oct. 17 below:
Parents and community members also brought up concerns revolving around a potential conflict of interest in the board president’s vote for the potential school closures.
However, during a special board meeting, EPISD’s board of trustees decided to release legal advice that says there is no conflict of interest with the board’s president’s vote in the decision.
You can watch the special board meeting from Nov. 4 below:
The last two community meetings will be held on Saturday:
- Stanton ES at 10:00 a.m.
- Park ES at 1:00 p.m.
EPISD’s board of trustees is expected to vote on the potential school closures on Tuesday, November 19 during their regular board meeting.
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