Two elementary schools in the Neshaminy School District will close at the end of the school year after a vote Tuesday night.
The Neshaminy School Board voted to close the Lower Southampton Elementary School in Feasterville as well as the Oliver Heckman Elementary School in Langhorne.
Students from Lower Southampton will attend the new Tawanka Elementary School, which is currently under construction, in Lower Southampton Township at the start of the 2016-2017 school year. Students from Oliver Heckman will attend either Tawanka Elementary or the Pearl S. Buck Elementary School in Levittown at the start of 2016-2017 school year.
Neshaminy School District spokesman Chris Stanley says the closures are part of a plan to deal with a student population decline over the past 20 years that has left the district with an excess of aging school buildings.
“The goal of the plan is to match the number of facilities with the number of students attending, while also providing much-needed energy, comfort and safety upgrades to several remaining school buildings, many of which date back to the 1950’s,” Stanley said in a released statement.
The District also closed Samuel Everitt Elementary school in Levittown at the end of the last school year.
“By closing the three elementary schools and opening one new school under this plan, the District would save significant operational and administrative costs,” he said.
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Stanley says the plan hasn’t led to a rise in taxes due to favorable bond rates, funding from the Guaranteed Energy Savings Act (GESA) and low construction costs.
