Westminster Public Schools will close three schools and reduce the number of grades served by three other schools as the district seeks to consolidate amid declining K-12 enrollment.
The changes, which were approved by the district’s Board of Education on Tuesday, will be implemented over a four-year period, beginning in the 2026-27 academic year, according to a news release.
The three schools targeted for closure are Westminster Academy of International Studies, Mesa Elementary and Hidden Lake Secondary School.
“These recommendations reflect thoughtful, long-term planning,” Superintendent Jeni Gotto said in a statement. “Our goal is to align facilities and enrollment in a way that strengthens academic programming, preserves student opportunity and ensures sustainability for years to come.”
The district’s first step is to close the Westminster Academy of International Studies later this year and have students move to Harris Park Elementary to form a PK-6 International Focus Program. The academy’s seventh- and eighth-graders will go to the new Uplands Discovery Campus, according to the news release.
John E. Flynn A. Marzano Academy and Shaw Heights Middle School are merging to form the Uplands Discovery Campus. Flynn students will attend school at Shaw Heights starting in the fall until the new campus opens in 2028, according to the district’s website.
The other changes by Westminster include:
- Fairview PK-8 and Tennyson Knolls Preparatory School will no longer serve seventh- and eighth-graders starting in the 2027-2028 academic year. Fairview students in those grades will move to Colorado Summit Leadership Academy, while TKP students will go to Hodgkins Leadership Academy.
- Mesa Elementary will close in two years. A boundary committee will determine where students go for the 2028-29 school year, but not all pupils affected by the closure will attend Uplands Discovery Campus, according to the news release.
- Sunset Ridge PK-8 will no longer teach seventh- and eighth-graders. Instead, those students will move to Uplands Discovery Campus in the 2028-29 academic year.
- Hidden Lake Secondary School will close in 2029. The educational program will relocate to the former Mesa Elementary building.
K-12 enrollment is falling statewide, mostly because fewer Coloradans are having children. Housing prices are also shifting where families live in metro Denver. The drop in students is hitting districts financially as they receive less per-pupil funding from the state when they have fewer students in their classrooms.
Other districts have also closed schools because of falling enrollment, including Denver Public Schools and Jeffco Public Schools. The Douglas County School District will shut down three elementary schools this summer.
Westminster Public Schools enrolls 7,590 students as of the 2025-26 academic year, according to state data.
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