MILLCREEK, Utah — SOS… Save our school!
That’s the message from angry parents about the proposed closing of an elementary school in the Granite School District.
Eastwood’s school mascot is the eagle, and one of the chants heard during a Tuesday protest was: “Don’t mess with our Eagle’s Nest!”
Some of the parents went even further, saying Granite District officials are stirring up a hornet's nest.
Nastasya Mangone is one of them.
“Closing a thriving, high-performing School really defies logic," she said.
So Mangone and a few dozen others, parents and students, staged a protest outside Skyline High School prior to the Granite District boundary meeting.
Keaton Gelwix is a parent of two Eastwood students.
“The protest is because we are not feeling heard," Gelwix said. "We love our school; it’s one of the top schools in the district, top in the state, and they’re ignoring our voices.”
Despite the fact that Eastwood is a top 10 elementary and a Gold-standing STEM school, Granite School District officials say there are too many factors against keeping Eastwood open. In particular: dwindling enrollment.
Ben Horsley is the Granite School District Superintendent.
“This isn’t anything new," he said. "We have seen a decline of over 15,000 students over the last 7 to 10 years, and over 20,000 students in the last 25 years, and that number is expected to continue to decline.”
Horsley says that does not make the proposal to close Eastwood, or any school, any easier.
“Nobody’s high-fiving down at the district office over this. This is one of the most difficult and challenging things a school board and a school district is ever faced with. Raising taxes? Bring it on! Closing a school?
It’s very emotional," he said.
And it’s a bitter pill to swallow for students and parents like Mangone.
“They’re basically forcing our hand to either choose between an unranked school or go to a different district where they perform better and fits our needs better," she said.
This is not a done deal yet; there will be another meeting in November, and a final vote on closing Eastwood Elementary is expected in early December.
