Overview
- Superintendent Brian Yearwood said the changes would save about $4 million toward $132 million in cuts needed next year, with additional proceeds anticipated from selling surplus properties.
- The proposal would close Liberty High School and Zachary Taylor Elementary, relocate Waller-Williams Environmental to a Fairdale facility, merge King Elementary into Maupin, and move TAPP to the Gheens Early Childhood Center at Male High School, citing low enrollment and high per-student costs.
- An LBMC audit confirmed a $188 million deficit within a roughly $2.4 billion operating budget and more than $740 million in debt, while describing the district’s financial position as strong and stable.
- JCPS outlined facility dispositions: selling the Zachary Taylor and King buildings, demolishing the current Waller-Williams structure while retaining the land, and leaving the future of Liberty’s building undecided.
- Three public forums are scheduled for Dec. 1–3, with a Jefferson County Board of Education vote expected Dec. 9, and JCPS also detailed 2026–27 projects including a new DuBois campus, a Grace James relocation, a new early-childhood center, Atherton renovations, and an Echo Trail boundary adjustment.