Debate intensifies over proposed school mergers in Pueblo School District 60

PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) - Pueblo School District 60 is taking another step in its rightsizing plan, a proposal that could merge several schools, repurpose others, and expand preschool access.

These recommendations were first presented to the board last month after a year-long review of enrollment and building usage.

At a school board meeting on Dec. 9, the superintendent acknowledged that hearing your child's school could be merged or closed is hard to hear. 

The process could merge or re-purpose several schools across the district to manage declining enrollment and determine what each building can handle.

Including proposed mergers between Beulah Heights and Highland Park, updates at Bradford, and the repurposing of Hyde Park. 

But one of the most debated recommendations centers on Columbian Elementary and Bessemer Academy.

Superintendent Dr. Barbara Kimzey explained why the plan proposes merging Columbian into the Bessemer campus.

"Merging, closing, co-locating - any of these things is traumatic for anyone directly impacted. What we're trying to do - if you’ll notice - we take the smaller campus and merge it into the larger campus so that we have fewer students affected."

Essesmer Academy teachers argue that the district has this one backward, saying that putting more students into a building with less room could create problems down the line.

"This leaves very little room for future growth. In contrast, if Colombian students were to merge into the Bessemer building, there would be ample space for all current students and additional room to accommodate further increases in enrollment," said one teacher at the school board meeting.

Teachers warn the district could face another round of consolidation if capacity becomes an issue again.

"By merging into a building that can accommodate enrollment changes, the district can reduce the likelihood of repeated consolidation or relocation decisions in the near future. That stability matters," says Natame Powers from Pueblo School District 60.

And while the board considers impacts across all schools in the rightsizing plan, teachers emphasized their message isn’t about pitting campuses against each other. 

"At the heart of this decision, it comes down to work that supports our students. This is not about one school winning over the other."

For more on the proposed rightsizing plan, read our previous coverage: What schools could merge? Pueblo School District 60 releases rightsizing plan

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