Pinellas County Schools Superintendent Kevin Hendrick withdrew Sexton Elementary in St. Petersburg from the School Board's Oct. 13 closure vote after board members questioned the proposal during an Oct. 6 workshop.

Six proposed closures remain under consideration. Hendrick said he would return with a revised recommendation no sooner than Oct. 20, with a later date considered likely.

"I will pull back that recommendation and bring back to the board a different look," Hendrick said, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

The decision followed opposition from parents who circulated a petition and questioned why Sexton was targeted when nearby schools had lower enrollment rates.

Sexton, at 1997 54th Ave. N., enrolls about 297 students and operates at 47% capacity. Nearby Woodlawn Elementary has approximately 147 students and operates at 25% capacity, according to figures cited during earlier district discussions.

Board questions Sexton closure proposal

School Board Chair Caprice Edmond, a former Woodlawn teacher, argued that closing Woodlawn instead of Sexton deserved consideration, citing enrollment and other factors.

Board members declined to substitute Woodlawn for Sexton just one week before the scheduled vote, instead giving Hendrick more time to evaluate alternatives.

Board member Katie Blaxberg questioned whether closing Sexton would fulfill the district's promise to provide affected families with educational options as good as or better than their current schools.

Board Vice Chair Dawn Peters, who had supported the original recommendation partly because the YMCA expressed interest in using the Sexton property, also backed further review.

The district is examining two alternatives: rezoning Sexton students entirely to Lynch Elementary or closing Woodlawn while keeping Sexton open, Bay News 9 reported.

The decision followed a similar revision to the district's Tarpon Springs consolidation plan. After community opposition, Hendrick proposed creating two K-8 schools, one at Sunset Hills Elementary and another at Tarpon Springs Fundamental Elementary.

Sexton parents had joined families from Tarpon Springs Middle School in advocating for alternatives to the district's original recommendations.

Jacquelyn Hussey, Sexton's PTA president and the mother of a second-grader, said families would continue pushing to keep the school open despite the delay.

"We are definitely not going to get comfortable and we're not going to stop," Hussey told WUSF on Oct. 8.

School closure debate raises equity concerns

The decision also drew criticism from the Concerned Organization for Quality Education for Black Students, which questioned the board's handling of the proposed closures during an Oct. 7 meeting at the President Barack Obama Main Library in St. Petersburg.

Group Chair Goliath Davis raised concerns about whether political pressure was influencing which schools received additional consideration, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

The group questioned whether schools serving larger percentages of Black students, including Woodlawn and Bear Creek elementary schools, were receiving equal consideration under the district's closure process.

Davis challenged Edmond over the decision to reconsider Sexton's closure. Edmond defended the request for further analysis, citing questions about the original recommendation and the potential use of the property by the YMCA.

The disagreement underscored concerns about how the district weighs enrollment, building conditions, community needs and educational opportunities when deciding which campuses to close.

District faces declining enrollment and budget pressures

The proposed closures are part of the district's Planning for Progress initiative, which aims to reduce operating costs and address declining enrollment.

Pinellas County Schools once served more than 100,000 students but now enrolls slightly more than 70,000. The district has approximately 45,000 vacant student seats, with dozens of campuses operating below capacity.

Hendrick initially projected that the seven-school closure plan could save approximately $25 million annually while eliminating nearly 5,000 unused student seats.

District leaders have warned that additional closures may be necessary as enrollment continues to decline.

The School Board is scheduled to vote Oct. 13 on the six remaining proposed closures and other campus changes. Sexton's future will be considered separately, while attendance zone changes for affected schools will be addressed at a later meeting.

The district's recommendations and meeting information are available on its Planning for Progress website.