COLUMBUS, Ohio — A special meeting for the Columbus City Schools Board of Education was held Thursday night. A notice from the district stated its purpose was to debrief from several school visits taken at the end of October, but little about specific schools was actually discussed.
The night began with Dr. Terrance Green, an associate professor at The University of Texas at Austin, guiding board members through the next steps in the school closure process. Some of the board members recently toured the nine schools and facilities proposed by the task force to be shut down.
The board members came together to discuss each of their findings from their school visits, but while they were instructed by Dr. Green not to discuss specifics of individual schools, board members Jennifer Adair and Tina Pierce expressed wanting to get into those specifics, which created tension during the meeting.
Board President Christina Vera shared her response to the confusion and frustration among some board members.
" I mean, unfortunately, those were the board members that did not participate in the tours, so I can understand the frustration. I mean, I think it's hard when you know you're not really understanding the process and you don't really have the information to be able to engage,” she said.
Vera reiterated that a “majority” of her colleagues are “all in on this process.”
While it seemed as though they were not all on the same page during the meeting, Vera said they’re legally required to make any meetings with Dr. Green open to the public.
Vera also shared her response to the parents who continue showing up to the meeting as they anxiously wait to find out if their child’s school might be getting shut down.
"I want to say thank you for continuing to show up. It's important to us to hear their concerns, but we also want to hear what their vision is for the district because this is about realignment. This is about the future of Columbus City Schools, so although we hear concerns, we also hear a lot about what the expectation is for their student's academic experience,” she said.
Board member Brandon Simmons released a statement following the meeting, saying the meeting descended into chaos. He added the board spent over two hours without addressing a single specific school or closure plan. The board voted unanimously in May to censure Simmons for the remainder of the 2024 calendar year.
In response to Simmons’ release of statements despite the censure, Vera stated, “Board member Simmons, he is an elected official, he’s an individual, he’s certainly entitled to his own opinion, but what I know about this board and what I know about my board colleagues, they’re showing up every day for students.”
Vera added they’re working to determine when the next special meeting will be held. There is still no timeline yet on when the board will be making its final decisions on schools.