Faculty and families of Logan Avenue Elementary School filled the USD 253 Board of Education room Wednesday evening to share their thoughts and feelings on the proposed closure of Logan, possibly within the next two years.
Among those to speak during Wednesday’s board meeting was Tricia Parks, who stated Logan Avenue is “more than a school, it is a community hub.”
Logan Avenue Teacher Aide Olivia Grover, who was speaking on behalf of Logan music teacher Daniel Juarez, noted that Logan is a school that has historically been a home to many students of color and of nonaffluent backgrounds.
One of the stated reasons for potentially closing Logan Avenue has been low enrollment numbers and smaller class sizes, an issue addressed by former Logan Avenue Lion and current Emporia High School sophomore Jaycie Joplin.
USD 253 Speech Pathologist Nathan Rytting stated that instead of looking to “consolidate” Logan Avenue, the district should instead look at consolidating certain positions, including his own, if necessary.
The series of public comments came before the USD 253 Board unanimously approved both phase one and phase two of the cost containment recommendations as presented. Not included in the list of approved recommendations; however, was the closure of Logan as it had been removed from phase two before Wednesday’s meeting, according to USD 253 Superintendent Dr. David McGehee, who told KVOE News the recommendation has now been moved into what he is calling “phase three.”
The future of Logan Avenue will be decided possibly during the board’s regular meeting on April 22, following a public hearing which is scheduled for April 15th at 6 pm. Board members approved the publication of a notice for said hearing in a separate vote during Wednesday’s meeting by a vote of 5-2.
Voting against the publication of notice, and by extension the closure of Logan, were board members Lillian Lingenfelter and Barb Fowler. Fowler noted she was not in favor of the closure during last Wednesday’s work session, where the recommendations were first presented publicly, and her stance has not changed.
During Wednesday’s meeting, Fowler stated that the decision to close Logan appeared to her to be rushed and based solely on low enrollment numbers when there are other factors that should first be considered.
That wasn’t the only determining factor for Fowler; however, as she also stated her feelings that “Southeast Emporia has been overlooked many times.”
Lingenfelter declined an interview.
Voting in favor of both items Wednesday night were board members Jeremy Dorsey, Grant Riles and Jami Reever, as well as Board Vice President Leslie Seeley and President Art Gutierrez. While speaking with KVOE following the meeting, Gutierrez stated it is “not a foregone conclusion” that the school will be closed; however, the district is doing all it can to ensure it is “covering its bases” in the event the closure does occur.
During the meeting, Gutierrez, along with several other members of the board, would state that this is not a decision they want to make, before adding that these conversations are a direct result of decisions made in Topeka by state lawmakers.
During his comments Wednesday, Dorsey would state the cause of the cost containment discussions is actually closer to home, saying the “reason we are here is jobs, jobs, jobs.”
Dorsey would then turn his attention to Emporia’s elected officials and economic development arm, the Regional Development Association of East Central Kansas, saying they need to “step it up.”
Dorsey also singled out the Lyon County Commission and a decision it rendered on a property annexation for a proposed A1 Pump and Jet expansion earlier this year.
The removal of Logan Avenue’s future from phase two was not the only altered item for Wednesday’s meeting. As KVOE News previously reported, phase one, which will focus largely on staff and budget reductions over the 2026-27 academic year, included the end of the district’s childcare program by May; however, the program will now continue through December and possibly longer if a recently written grant by the program’s director and families is approved at the state level.
Despite the potential continuation of the childcare program, its director, Samantha Estrada, has already tendered her resignation to the district. Whether or not that was due to the potential end of the program is unclear; however, it did lead KVOE News to ask Gutierrez if he and other board members are concerned this could be the first of many resignations over the course of the next year due to the potential closure of Logan, among other cost-saving efforts.
Gutierrez says it “absolutely” is a concern and one they saw become a reality just a few years ago during similar conversations on a different potential school closure. 9
Recommendations approved via Wednesday’s vote and their projected cost savings are as follows:
1. Close Childcare Program December 2026 if the grant is not received, $269,279
2. PreK $130,464
a. Reduce one 3-year-old and one 4-year-old teacher
3. K-5 $1,020,624
a. Class size ranges reducing 6 teachers
b. Reduce Instruction Aids by 4
c. Reduce Instructional Strategists by 1
d. Reduce Library Clerks (eliminate role) by 11
e. Reduce Student Support Specialists by 1
f. Reduce Tech/Stream/Coach by 1.5
4. 6-8 $398,536
a. Revise class size range
b. Reduce 3 teachers
c. Reduce the Creative Writing position by 1
d. Reduce Inst Strategists by 2
e. Reduce Band/Orch/Vocal by 0.5
f. Revise Spartan Extra to cost-neutral
g. Reduce Asst. FB Coach by 1
h. Reduce Asst Soccer Coach by 1
i. Reduce X-Country Asst. by 1
5. 9-12 $437,311
a. Revise class size standard
b. Reduce Instructional Strategists by 1
c. Reduce Department Clerks by 1
d. Reduce teachers by 4
e. Reduce FHLC Secretary by 1
f. Reduce FHLC Instructional Aid by 1
g. Reduce Instructional Aids by 2
h. Reduce Piano Accompanist by 0.5
i. Reduce Asst. FB by 1
j. Reduce Asst. VB by 1
k. Gymnastics eliminated by KSHSAA
6. District $287,468
a. Reduce Student and Family
Support Liaison by 1
b. Reduce Assistant
Cooks/Servers by 4.5
c. Reduce Transportation
Dispatch/Secretary by 0.5
d. Eliminate Director of Health
Services by 1
7. Non-renew CKH Contract $118,000
8. 10% reduction in department and building budgets $214,000
9. Reduce Food Expenditures $10,000
10. Copier Contract Savings $30,000
11. Reduce new teacher training days $20,000
12. Eliminate JAG-K or negotiate cost neutral $28,000
13. Reduce Childcare to zero months in 2027-28 (additional savings) 157,050
14. Continue additional
reductions to 2026-27 projected
expenses due to savings
implemented in 2025-26 310,223
Total Savings for Phases 1 and 2, NOT including savings related to a school closure, i.e., Phase 3 $3,430,955
Additional details and actions from Wednesday’s meeting can be found online at USD253.org. The full meeting can be viewed here.
