Re-evaluate proposal to close Polk

We don't envy the Cedar Rapids School Board and the tough decision it's scheduled to make Monday evening.

The board is set to vote on recommendations made by Superintendent Dave Benson on school closings and boundary changes. Benson has recommended closing Polk Elementary School and the Monroe Early Childhood Center, as well as closing the elementary portion of Wilson School. Benson's calls could affect the lives of hundreds of students and family members.

But it is the potential closure of Polk, a school with 214 students situated in a low-income neighborhood near the city's core, that has sparked remarkable public outcry.

Nearby Coe College, members of the Daybreak Rotary chapter that's forged a special relationship with Polk, neighborhood groups, city leaders and others have strongly urged the board to reconsider. Letters to the editor in support of Polk have poured into The Gazette in recent weeks. A petition drive has collected more than 1,500 names.

Then there are the parents who have mobilized to save the school, passionately arguing that Polk has changed the lives of their children, their families and the neighborhood for the better in multiple ways. There have been many stories of children who struggled and now thrive, of students facing tough prospects who now dream of college. One neighborhood mother at a recent school board meeting said the school's “We're Going to College” program prompted her to return to college. At the core of their message is that Polk is a special school that deserves to be celebrated, not closed.

And Polk's academic performance is impressive, with rising achievement trend lines in math, reading and science and test scores that have jumped considerably in recent years, in some cases above the district average. Polk worked its way off the federal Schools in Need of Assistance list under No Child Left Behind. And with 90 percent of its students receiving free and reduced lunches, it's proving that a students' family income is not the final word on academic potential.

We understand the enrollment declines and budget concerns that drove the district to this destination. But we also contend that closing Polk is a reaction to declining enrollment, not a serious effort to stem the tide. We question whether the $550,000 the district claims will be saved annually by closing Polk will actually be realized. And if it is, it's worth noting that the savings amounts to 0.3 percent of the district's general fund budget. The district has talked of the potential for staff cuts without closures, but no alternatives have been outlined.

We've also made it clear from the beginning of this process that it should be driven by a desire to transform the district's educational product for the better. Parents losing their neighborhood school should get some assurance that their sacrifice is being made in the name of educational improvement. But the specific educational benefits of closing Polk remain unclear.

Academic achievement, it seems, has not been the driving force behind this facilities process. If it had been, it's unlikely that Polk would be threatened.

We urge the board to grant Polk a reprieve, at least for the next school year. The district needs to take more time to consider the implications of breaking up an institution that has engendered such high praise and fierce loyalty. During that time, the district can evaluate the budget savings realized by closing Monroe, and better determine whether a Polk closure would really be worth it.

It's a tough decision. But keeping Polk open is the right decision.