Faced with mounting financial challenges, declining student enrollment, and aging infrastructure, the Jackson school district is exploring options to consolidate its high schools. The most contentious proposal is a plan to merge Jackson Liberty High School and Jackson Memorial High School into a unified district-wide system, separating students by grade level.
The prospect of high school closures has ignited heated debates among parents, with local Facebook groups becoming battlegrounds as parents and students express concerns over the plan’s potential impacts.
The consolidation plan follows the closure of Rosenauer Elementary School which has since been listed for auction, but has not been sold yet. Goetz Middle School has also been floated as a potential candidate for closure, though district officials have yet to confirm any formal proposals. Speculation has even extended to Holman Elementary School, sparking further anxiety among parents.
Despite the severe financial crisis in school districts like Jackson, Governor Phil Murphy has previously dismissed requests for increased state aid, encouraging local leaders to instead consider school closures and other cost-cutting measures.
They should just move The Memorial kids over to Liberty High School – the newer, more wider hallways, updated computer rooms,, etc. Why go from a newer (only 19 yr old school), Backwards, to an Older, (57 yr old school)? Doesnt Make Sense to go all in to Memorial.
Because most of our students live on the Memorial side of town. Why are we busing most of the student population further away?