At a Great Schools Committee meeting Monday, Oct. 12, at Gwen T. Jackson Elementary School, Amani United President Elizabeth Brown said she learned about the meeting only when she arrived to pick up her son. She said the district had not contacted her organization, despite the neighborhood’s ongoing discussions about possible closures.

Brown argued that community organizations should help shape decisions affecting their neighborhoods, rather than being asked for input late in the process. She also criticized the district’s school-screening tool as too difficult for families to use.

“I have a master’s in education and if you just sent me this link, I would not be able to navigate this,” said Hannah Freeman, executive director of Milwaukee Inner-City Congregations Allied for Hope, describing the tool’s complexity for community members without staff guidance.

No schools have been formally selected for closure. However, consulting firm Perkins Eastman recommended closing five North Side schools: Auer Avenue, Clarke Street, Hopkins Lloyd Community, Keefe Avenue and Siefert. The district’s screening tool has flagged 26 schools as potential candidates for closure or merger.

The tool is not yet public. District officials say they are working to make it available while protecting underlying data, but have not given a release date. Factors used in screening include whether a school operates below half capacity, has failed to grow enrollment over five years and is within a mile of another underused MPS school.

Committee members and educators questioned whether those measures tell the whole story. MPS teacher Bria Tillman said the tool does not account for why a school may be under-enrolled, its staffing, how many neighborhood children attend or the effects of past mergers. She urged the district to consider Hopkins Lloyd’s history as a merged school before weighing another change there.

Others called for additional measures, including academic performance and staff retention. Superintendent Brenda Cassellius said district staff would review the committee’s proposed criteria and bring requested information, including data on staff retention and students with disabilities, to the next meeting, scheduled for Oct. 26.

Cassellius said she would add meetings if needed rather than rush the process. If closures are to take effect after this school year, district policy requires the School Board to act by December. She also said MPS would work to improve outreach and increase family participation.

The debate extends beyond how to identify schools. MPS paraprofessional Joshua Taylor said closures would not address what he views as longstanding disinvestment in North Side schools, and called instead for expanded community-school programs and stronger support for school communities.

City Forward Collective Executive Director Colleston Morgan said consolidating under-enrolled schools could free resources for investment, but the neighborhoods facing closures should also benefit from any savings. MPS educator Angela Harris said that if closures prove necessary, the district must center students, communities and equity in carrying them out.

The Great Schools Committee has not finalized its criteria. Its Oct. 26 meeting is the last one currently scheduled, though Cassellius has said more meetings may be added.