LYNCHBURG, Va. – In a school board meeting Tuesday night, Lynchburg City Schools discussed what’s to come as they work to create an LCS Facilities Master Plan.
As we’ve previously reported, in March 2022, a report revealed that the number of public schools in the Hill City is starting to outpace the enrollment rate, creating an issue for school leaders.
To put things into perspective, Lynchburg has 11 elementary schools while Roanoke has 16 with double the amount of students.
We’re told that enrollment has dropped by more than 10% within the last 20 years, with many schools in danger of closing given that it has become a challenge to maintain the buildings. There are also some that need major renovation.
The facilities assessment report will be used to identify programming needs in the facilities as school officials work to pinpoint what buildings will be used.
But the school board wants to hear from the community first and will share the Facilities Master Plan with the public and solicit feedback.
The school board said the next step in this process will include the formation of a joint city and school staff workgroup that will help officials understand the financial capacity of each building as well as its programming needs.
Next, officials will hire a national education consultant to help them understand how their programs compare to national trends. They stated this will help them determine what’s needed to help their programs be most effective and best serve the needs of their students.
School officials hope to seek plan approval in the summer of 2023.
