Evanston-Skokie School District 65 closing 2 more schools to net $20 million amid budget issues

Parents, teachers and administrators in Evanston are listening and speaking up as the Evanston-Skokie School District prepares to close more schools. They just shut two down last year.

The interim superintendent Eric Witherspoon calls it a financial crisis, and if this district does nothing, it won't be able to pay teachers and staff down the line. 

In school a cafeteria Evanston-Skokie parents and teachers paid close attention as district leaders broke down the deficit School District 65 faces. So to get out of the red, cuts are projected.

Those cuts include at least two schools shutting down.

"It's just hard to trust again after last year we literally went through this whole thing," said parent Kelly Arrogante.

Last fall, parents and students rallied to keep schools open after the district raised the flag about the financial problems. They ended up closing two schools. Another year and more closures loom.

"Here we go again, but I do have hope that this time we'll be able to can come up with a clearer vision," said parent Kelly McCabe.

The money woes center around old buildings in need of repairs, declining enrollment and a large staff. There are currently 5,900 total students enrolled and 1,368 full-time staff members. They have 16 buildings but want to close two schools and teachers will be cut too.

"There's no easy way to take away the difficulty of that," Witherspoon said.

Yet the interim superintendent says staff and parents must brace for closures and cuts to balance this budget.

Right now there's a $5 million deficit. If they continue with no cuts by  2030, they won't have enough to make payroll. Leaders predict these closures will net a $ 20 million expense reduction.

"We will come up with a plan in the very near future so people understand what it is, but that uncertainty will be able to go away after this because people won't have to worry from year to year," he said.

While many parents understand the math isn't adding up, they question how fewer schools and teachers will impact children.

"At what cost is it leading to larger class sizes?" McCabe said.

"I'm not optimistic, but I'm very hopeful," Arrogante said.

School officials haven't said which schools will shut down or what programs will get cut during Tuesday's meeting. That will be revealed at the next board meeting in October.