San Angelo ISD Board Set to Decide Elementary Grandfathering Rules

SAN ANGELO, TX — The San Angelo ISD Board of Trustees is expected to vote Monday on how many current elementary students will be allowed to stay at their present schools when the district closes two campuses and redraws attendance boundaries for the 2027-28 school year. 

The decision comes after the board voted 6-1 in January to close Bowie and Reagan elementary schools at the end of the current school year, reducing the district from 14 to 12 elementary campuses. The closures are part of a broader effort to address declining enrollment, projected budget shortfalls, and staffing challenges. District officials have estimated the two closures will save roughly $1.8 million annually in operating costs. 

At Monday’s special meeting, Superintendent Dr. Christopher Moran outlined the remaining key choice for the board: which elementary grade levels, if any, to “grandfather.” Grandfathering would allow students currently enrolled at a campus to finish their elementary years there even if the new boundaries assign them to a different school. 

According to Moran, the board has heard arguments ranging from allowing only rising fifth-graders to stay, to permitting all current elementary students to remain. Parents who have contacted the district or spoken at meetings have largely advocated for the broader option. Special programs such as functional academics, emergent bilingual, and gifted and talented would continue, with siblings of those students generally allowed to stay as well, subject to capacity. 

High school and middle school students already have clearer paths to finish at their current campuses if they meet transfer requirements. 

Trustee Dr. Kyle Mills noted that the numbers provided by the administration suggest roughly 1,500 elementary students could be affected depending on where the grandfathering line is drawn.

Moran noted that the more grades the board grandfathers, the more difficult it becomes for the district to plan staffing and classroom assignments, especially while the administration is also working on next year’s budget. The district expects to ask parents to declare their intentions earlier than usual—likely in January—so officials can begin planning.

“Wherever the line is drawn, we will effectively communicate that,” Moran said. “But we are going to divide some families at some point.”

The board took no vote on Monday. The item is scheduled for action at the regular board meeting on Monday, November 16, at 5:45 p.m. at the SAISD Administration Building. 

The attendance boundary changes themselves are part of a months-long process that included work by the district’s Committee on Academic Stewardship and Efficiency. New boundaries are intended to better balance enrollment across the remaining 12 elementary campuses once Bowie and Reagan close. 

Families will still have access to the district’s regular transfer process for other situations, though capacity and staffing will remain limiting factors. The board’s decision next week is expected to set the rules specifically for the transition year.