Minneapolis Public Schools could close buildings amid budget challenges

Key Points:

• The Minneapolis school district proposed consolidating programs, redrawing attendance boundaries, and moving thousands of students to different schools to address budget issues, potentially affecting 12-14% of students and up to 16 buildings losing current academic programming.
• The district faces financial challenges due to falling enrollment, chronic underfunding, open enrollment, and demographic changes, with many buildings underutilized at 70% capacity or less.
• Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams emphasized that the district’s current footprint is inefficient and that previous efforts to increase enrollment and reduce spending have been insufficient to resolve budget problems.
• The Minneapolis Federation of Teachers criticized the proposals, urging a focus on boosting enrollment and improving recruitment and retention rather than school closures, while some school board members expressed concern over early community notifications before board approval.
• Public feedback will be collected through mid-October, with a board vote expected in November and potential implementation of changes starting in the 2027-28 school year.