KINGSVILLE, Texas — Kingsville Independent School District has announced a proposed improvement plan consisting of a elementary realignment plan that will be voted on Tuesday. The plan would consolidate three campuses into two and has sparked mixed reactions among community members and educators
The improvement plan would transfer and divide elementary students from three campuses into two: Harvey Elementary School and Kleberg Elementary School. Under the proposal, Kleberg would serve students in pre-kindergarten through second grade, while Harvey would accommodate third through fifth graders.
District officials say the realignment aims to address overall performance issues related to low ratings, declining enrollment and a budget deficit of $4.2 million.
Nick Harrel, owner of Harrel's Kingsville Pharmacy, has deep ties to the school district's history. His father and grandfather both served on the school board, and Nick Hazel Elementary was named after his great-grandfather.
"You have to be able to have the money to operate so they're looking at it from that standpoint plus if you can get all the kids together you can hopefully get them better educated," Harrel said.
However, not everyone supports the plan. Melissa Perez-Estrada, a pre-kindergarten teacher who has worked at Herel Elementary for 26 years, expressed concerns about the proposal.
"My concern is Kleberg was closed years ago because its a flood zone, it floods in that school constantly," Perez-Estrada said.
The veteran educator also worries about job security and the impact on educational quality.
"How many of us aren't going to get another job? How many of us are going to get cut?" she said.
While Perez-Estrada believes the performance plan could work in the future, she questions its immediate implementation.
"Increasing class size is going to make it better? No its going to make it worse," she said.
Kingsville ISD plans to hold a special board meeting on Tuesday where the board will consider final approval of the school improvement plan.
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