JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — An elementary school in northwest Jacksonville will be shutting down mid-school year.
The Duval County school board unanimously voted to close Carter G. Woodson Elementary School on Dec. 19, 2020.
The district plans to consolidate and have the more than 200 students attend another school about a mile away: Northwestern Legends Elementary School. The district said the academic performance and student enrollment played deciding factors in consolidation.
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The academic performance at Woodson has been on the decline over the past two years, according to Duval County Public Schools, and since 2016, Woodson’s enrollment has decreased from 500 to 278 enrolled this fall.
It’s not the first school to have to consolidate in Duval County.
Action News Jax reported during the summer that John Love Early Learning Center, St. Clair Evans Elementary and Brentwood Elementary School would also be consolidated into other schools in the district.
When Action News Jax spoke to parents, some felt the move leaves them feeling like students in underserved communities are not a priority.
DCPS originally planned to close Woodson at the end of the academic year but the COVID-19 pandemic sped up the process.