The fate of two Fulton County elementary schools is expected to be decided in February, a spokesman said.

Fulton County Schools is considering permanently closing Spalding Drive Elementary in Sandy Springs and Parklane Elementary in East Point due to declining enrollment and aging buildings. According to the schools' websites, Spalding Drive Elementary opened in 1966 and Parklane Elementary opened in 1953.

The possibility has angered parents at both schools, who have spoken out at school board meetings and council meetings. It has also worried the mayors of both cities.

Fulton schools officials said forecasting future enrollment includes looking at birth rates and the number of students expected to enter preschool, as well as whether the communities are expected to see new residential development.

If the two elementary schools close, students would be moved to new schools beginning in August 2025, said Brian Noyes, chief communications officer for Fulton County Schools. When asked why schools might close, Noyes pointed to two problems.

“People wait longer and tend to have fewer children,” Noyes said. According to Macrotrends.net, the birth rate in Georgia has fallen by 6 percent since 2021.

Another problem is housing. “In Fulton County – particularly in Sandy Springs – housing construction is another trend we are seeing.” In recent years, Sandy Springs has sought to build affordable workforce housing, also known as “missing middle (income) housing.” becomes.

Spalding Drive Elementary School parent Steven Guy said a parent committee to save the school is closely examining whether lower birth rates and housing problems are applicable to the north Fulton school.

“I think employees may not have all the data,” Guy said. “We are coming out of COVID. I can count five families in my small neighborhood who have moved into my neighborhood or have young descendants on the way in the last two years. I have a COVID baby. There’s no way they have that information.”

Local parents advocating for Save Spalding Drive Elementary have collected nearly 2,100 signatures on a Change.org petition.

Some commenters on the petition said generations of family members had attended the school.

Commenter Katie Kloder said her two children attended Spalding Drive Elementary and its closure would be “detrimental to the community… It would make more sense if it was a failing school, but that's not the case.”

Numerous parents also spoke out during public comment at a Sandy Springs City Council meeting on Sept. 17, where Mayor Rusty Paul opposed the school closure.

“We’re all concerned,” Rusty Paul said during a Sept. 17 city council meeting.

Paul said he believes the school system's neglect in maintaining the building has led to a decline in enrollment.

“There are parents who look at these buildings and say, 'I think I'm going to send my kids somewhere else,'” Paul said. “And then the population drops. A political decision not to improve the buildings leads to a different political result, which they now use to justify closing the school.”

The Fulton County Schools System will hold community forums on the possible closure of Spalding Drive Elementary School on October 7, November 4 and December 5 at Riverwood High School from 6 to 8 p.m.

Forums on the possible closure of Parklane Elementary School will be held at Tri-Cities High School on October 9, November 6 and December 4 from 6 to 8 p.m

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