‘We faced the impossible choice’: Pair of Bellevue schools close Thursday amid enrollment struggles
Thursday was the last day of school for Wilburton and Eastgate elementary schools in Bellevue before they closed permanently.
“I didn’t want the school to close because it’s really kind there,” said Eastgate second grader, Andanya Jain.
Parents feel the same.
”It’s sad, but I’m trying to hold it in,” said Amanda Hahn, whose son is in kindergarten.
The district approved plans in March to close the two schools as part of a consolidation effort stemming from a $31 million budget shortfall brought on by falling enrollment. Parents watched the days dwindle since then.
“Since January, we have been very sad and saying that it’s going to be the last few months, then the last few weeks, and (Thursday), the last day so it has been hard,” said Janina Alvarez, who has three kids at Eastgate.
“As a system, we faced the impossible choice of consolidating our smaller schools, or losing staff and much-needed services and supports for students across the entire district,” Bellevue School District Superintendent Dr. Kelly Aramaki said in a release sent out on Thursday. “Knowing how amazing every school is in the Bellevue School District and that our kids, families and staff would thrive wherever they landed, we chose to prioritize supports and services to students and to protect as many educator jobs as possible.”
Parents of kids at both schools had previously expressed concerns over a few factors, including that Wilburton had opened in 2018 and cost millions in taxpayer dollars. It was also a Microsoft Showcase School, built to use state-of-the-art technology to “drive school-wide transformation and efficiencies.”
Parent Chad Thomas said the school district said the school has enough in its reserves to keep the consolidation from happening.
”They get a $400 million-dollar-a-year budget. They have over $80 million dollars in reserves. They keep saying it’s a rainy day fund. Well, it’s raining. I don’t know any other way to spend that money. What are they waiting for?” said Thomas.
Beginning in the fall, students from Wilburton will attend Clyde Hill and Enatai, while students from Eastgate will attend Spiritridge.
“That is the main thing. I mean, they have to be happy, they have to be ready to go to school and have fun and learn, right?” said Andanya’s mom, Aditi Jain.
