Pinellas Parents Want Schools Open

Parents say "NO" on Pinellas School Closures — And the School Board Appears to Be Listening

Maybe this thing isn’t a done deal after all.

Dozens of parents packed Tuesday’s Pinellas County School Board meeting, with the loudest pushback coming from Tarpon Springs and families fighting to keep Tarpon Springs Fundamental Elementary open.

And give the School Board some credit here: members didn’t just sit through public comment and move on. They asked questions, took notes and tossed some pretty significant homework back to Superintendent Kevin Hendrick and district staff.

Hendrick’s proposal calls for closing Tarpon Springs Fundamental and ultimately combining it with Tarpon Springs Middle as a K-8 fundamental campus.

Parents came prepared with another message: We understand the enrollment problem. Now let us help find a better solution.

None of this means the closures are off the table.

Hendrick continues to strongly recommend consolidations, pointing to some tough numbers: Over 40 Pinellas elementary schools have fewer than 300 students, while 45 district schools are operating below 60% capacity. Something clearly has to change.

But even Hendrick acknowledged that community meetings have produced some strong ideas that could potentially be incorporated into the district's plans.

So, props to the parents for showing up with actual alternatives — and props to School Board members for apparently being willing to challenge the original blueprint and send some of it back to the superintendent for another look.

Now comes the interesting part.

Does the plan actually change?

Because listening is important. What happens after listening is what these families will be watching.