Clovis school board unanimously approves master plan

The Clovis Municipal Schools Facilities Master Plan will go into effect as planned after school board members approved it by a 5-0 vote Tuesday.

Approval means the closure of Cameo Elementary School in May 2025, consolidating the system's dual language program to La Casita school (this August), changing Lockwood Elementary to an early childhood center (this August), moving the Freshman Academy to the Clovis High School Campus (August 2025), creating an I-Academy at the former Freshman Academy (August 2025) and gradually repurposing some facilities while liquidating others.

The changes will allow CMS to access matching state funds for construction projects, school officials have said.

Failure to adopt changes would have cost the district "millions" in state funding, according to information posted on the school website.

Jay Brady, deputy superintendent of Operations, Technology and Athletics, presented the plan to the board before the vote.

"The schools are going to be full, but the classes will remain the same. The cafeterias and playgrounds will be full," Brady said.

About 100 parents and others concerned with the proposed changes crammed into the school's board room to share their views on March 24. On Tuesday, fewer than 50 came out for the vote, none of them asking to speak during the public comment part of the meeting.

While the closing of Cameo and repurposing at Lockwood especially left some frustrated, board members said they had little choice, based on state guidelines.

"These are guidelines we have to follow. There are goals and state mandates we have to follow. It's happening all over our state," Board Secretary Sharon Epps said.

She described some of the changes as "heartfelt."

Board member Shawn Hamilton said the district's future is at stake.

"This is good for all of our kids and our future and that's how I'm going to vote," Hamilton said.

Board member Paul Cordova said school systems are undergoing change throughout the nation.

"When we were in New Orleans I spoke to a man from Galveston. They were having the same issue. It's happening all over," Cordova said.

Community activist Josefita Griego views the changes as unfairly targeting lower-income families.

"With the closure of Cameo and the change at Lockwood ... now the parents are going to have to figure out how to get their kids to school. Why didn't they make the change in a higher income area?" Griego said.

Griego believes the matter should have been put to a public vote.

"I feel like government is going to do what they want regardless of the public view or opinion. Government officials really don't want the public's opinion," Griego said.

"Sadly there's going to be a lot of children displaced because of the outcome."

Griego also said Cameo and Lockwood might have been saved, "if the citizens would be more united in the community.

"The school board, city and county governments know that the citizens of Clovis will not get involved in change so they do as they wish," she said.

School Superintendent Renee Russ said officials did acknowledge the emotional aspects of the changes. But Cameo, as one example, would cost $39 million to replace and needed about $1 million to maintain repairs – not logical for a district that has more than 3,600 empty seats overall.

"The bottom line is our footprint is too large and we have to make decisions on how to shrink that footprint," Russ said last month.

Russ said Wednesday that the district "put forth great effort to inform everyone about the proposed changes because we wanted to make sure that parents, teachers, and the community at large understood the 'why' behind the recommendations.

"Change can be tough and we know some folks might still be feeling disappointed or upset about the decision, even though they may have a better understanding now about the reasons behind the change than they initially did. We do not want to minimize their feelings in the least."

Russ said the district's approach to communicating with the community about the FMP recommendations "was never about convincing anyone."

"It was about giving everyone the full picture so they could wrap their heads around the complexities of the situation. We're grateful for how respectful most everyone has been in their conversations with district staff and board members. It's a testament to our community's commitment to working through things together.

"Being in limbo about potential change is sometimes more unsettling than the actual change itself. We're hoping that having a firm direction will help everyone feel a little more settled. It is also our hope that we can continue to work together with our community, keeping our eyes on the future and finding new opportunities to serve our students even better. It's all about moving forward, one step at a time."