About a dozen parents gathered at Barrett Elementary off South Arlington Street on Wednesday to hear some news about their childrens' transitions in the fall.
Barrett is one of three Akron Public Schools that will close to help close a 22-million dollar budget gap. It's the first school to have such an informational meeting. Meetings will follow at Rankin Elementary on Thursday evening, and at Essex Elementary on May 14th.
At Barrett, officials announced that Barrett students going to Firestone Park Elementary or Voris Community Learning Center in the fall will get transportation to school.
Voris principal Kathleen Koehler says it's a safety issue, meant to keep kids from having to cross very unsafe roads like Waterloo Road and South Arlington Street.
"We feel very strongly about that, that's going to help our parents here at Barrett very much," Koehler tells AkronNewsNow.com. "It's going to ensure the safety of the children...we are very glad about that."
Jennifer Rivera, the mother of a Barrett Kindergartener, she says she's gotten answers and cooperation from the school district, but there's already been change in her daughter's life.
"I'm cautious because I do worry, I do worry about change for her," Rivera tells AkronNewsNow.com. "I mean, it's a big change for her...we're originally not from here, we're from Massachusetts when we came here. So, now we're moving on again, there are things that have to be done."
23 students have already been approved for open enrollment out of Barrett next Fall, all getting either their first or second choice of new schools in the Akron district.
The displaced students at the three closing schools, Barrett, Rankin and Essex, get first choice for open enrollment requests this fall.
The rest of the students will follow new assignments to Firestone Park or Voris, depending on where they live....students living north of Eller Avenue will attend Firestone Park, and those living south of Eller Avenue will attend Voris.
Many students at Barrett have special needs for special education. District officials again emphasized that the special education would follow the student, not the building.
