Leander ISD weighs closing 3 elementary schools amid $34M deficit

The Leander school board will decide in September whether to close three under-enrolled elementary schools in the 2026-27 school year or keep all or some of them open with reduced staffing. The options also include reduced staffing at additional elementary schools.

The changes are necessary because the district has a $34 million deficit for fiscal year 2025-26 due to reduced funding from the state, inflation and declining enrollment, said Pete Pape, the district's chief financial officer. Community forums will be held after school starts in August to get feedback before the board makes a decision. The dates for the forums have not yet been set.

The district also is trying to whittle down the deficit in other ways, including announcing in February that it would cut more than 200 positions from its budget for the 2025-26 school year.

The three elementaries that might be closed are Steiner Ranch, Faubion and Cypress. Steiner Ranch is in the southern part of the district and Faubion and Cypress are in the central part of the district. School officials say enrollment is declining in the southern part of the district.

"Elementary kids are moving to the district at a slower rate than secondary students," said Jeremy Trimble, the district's chief operating officer. Elementary schools were built to hold about 800 students, said Trimble. During this past school year, Steiner Ranch had 417 students, Faubion had 353 and Cypress had 506, according to district figures.

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Dozens of parents have appeared at school board meetings during the spring to protest the closings of any elementary schools in the district, saying their neighborhoods are centered around the schools. The southern part of the 200-square-mile district includes a part of Austin that is in Williamson County. The northern part of the district includes the city of Leander. The central part of the district includes parts of the city of Cedar Park.

On May 29, Trimble presented three paths for the school board to consider for possible closure or reduced staffing. The first plan would save the district about $4.1 million and includes closing Steiner Ranch, Faubion and Cypress elementary schools. Students from Steiner Ranch would be sent to Laura Bush and River Ridge elementaries. Faubion students would attend West Elementary and students from Cypress would go to Naumann Elementary.

Under this path, Steiner Ranch Elementary would be used for a paid pre-kindergarten program and Faubion would be a new location for New Hope High School, an alternative school that now meets in portable buildings. Cypress could be used to house the district's police force and also to provide space for professional development and other administrative services, Trimble said.

The second path that Trimble presented to the school board would save the district about $1.7 million, he said. It would keep all three elementary schools open but would reduce staffing at each. Staffing also would be reduced at Naumann, River Ridge, Laura Bush and Giddens elementaries —schools that also are in the southern part of the district.

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The third plan for the school board to consider would save the district $3.5 million, Trimble said. It would close Steiner Ranch and Faubion, while Cypress and Naumann elementaries would remain open but with reduced staffing.

Anna Smith, president of the Leander school board, said she would not comment on what option she preferred.

"Right now I don't feel it's appropriate for me to share a personal opinion because I want to ensure we truly listen to our community before the board provides any direction," she told the Statesman."While we know similar conversations are happening across Texas, I believe its essential that our decisions are grounded in local voices and needs."

The district's long-range planning committee presented another option to the school board in January that the school board ignored, said Heather Tankersley, a member of the committee. That option would have closed Four Points Middle School because it is not in a neighborhood and sent those students to Canyon Ridge Middle School, Tankersley said.

It also would have turned Laura Bush Elementary into a center for fifth and sixth grades and made Steiner Ranch and River Ridge elementaries for students from kindergarten through fourth grade. Four Points Middle School would be used as an overflow facility for Vandergrift High School, Tankersley said.

"This plan would have preserved neighborhood schools and has the most minimal impact on busing,"she said.

Trimble disagreed.

"While consolidating fifth and sixth graders at Laura Welch Bush may appear efficient at first glance, current projections show continued enrollment decline across all grade levels in the area— an important factor to consider in any long-term planning decisions," Trimble said.

Tankersley also said she questions why the district is designing two new elementary schools in its northern area."If we are in such a budget deficit, how do you justify new campuses?" she asked. "Instead of spending money on brand new schools ask what people want and need and let's create programs to keep them in the district."

In 2023, voters approved bond money for the two new elementary schools.

"They are being built in areas where enrollment is growing rapidly," said Crestina Hardie, a district spokeswoman. "Without these schools we risk overcrowding at neighboring campuses."

The city of Leander, in the northern part of the district, is among the fastest-growing cities with a population of 50,000 or greater in the country.

Hardie said enrollment is slowing in the southern part of the district because of rising home prices, fewer new housing developments and aging neighborhoods that are not attracting young families. "In many cases, families who raised children in these communities are staying in their homes after their children graduate, creating a natural decline in student population without new families moving in to replace them," she said.

The parent of a student at Steiner Ranch Elementary, Rachel Lilla, said she doesn't believe closing Steiner Ranch, Faubion and Cypress elementaries will provide the cost savings that the district claims. She said she also doesn't think that a paid pre-kindergarten program will work at Steiner Ranch Elementary. "If we can't fill an elementary school with K-5, how will we fill an entire campus for pre-K?" she said.

Kaycee Parker, the parent of a student at Steiner Ranch Elementary, said closing down Steiner and other schools will cause neighborhoods to lose at least a million dollars in appraised value. She said the district should start open enrollment, allowing schools to accept children who live in the district but not in the actual area.