Huntsville City Schools closing 3 schools, adding new ones

Huntsville City Schools will close three schools in the coming years, as part of a strategic plan that also involves consolidating some schools and adding some new ones.

The $600 million plan will be discussed over the next several weeks, and will be implemented over 5-10 years if approved.

Huntsville City Schools capital plan

Huntsville City Schools’ proposed 10-year capital plan includes building multiple new schools over the next 5-7 years, closing Chapman Elementary, Mountain Gap Elementary and Mountain Gap Middle School.

The plan specifically involves:

• Moving students from the following elementary campuses to their feeder middle school:
  • Dawson
  • Highlands
  • Lakewood
  • Rolling Hills
  • Blossomwood
  • Jones Valley
  • Monte Sano
  • Sonnie Hereford
• For new and renovated elementary schools, attempting to establish elementary schools that will not exceed 550 students
• Establishing larger middle schools to allow implementation of preferred team teaching approach for grades 6 through 8
• Aligning all magnet programs so that they feed to Lee High or New Century Technology High, with the exception of the Early College Magnet at Jemison
• Update magnet programs to reinvigorate community interest and to ensure that new magnet facilities draw a diverse student enrollment

HCS feeder plans

Feeder pattern community meetings will occur at the school campuses below from 5:30PM – 7PM. Video recordings from each meeting will be posted for those unable to attend in-person.

• Tuesday, April 2: Columbia Feeder Pattern
• Wednesday, April 3: Grissom Feeder Pattern
• Thursday, April 4: Jemison Feeder Pattern
• Tuesday, April 9: Huntsville Feeder Pattern
• Wednesday, April 10: Lee/NCTHS Feeder Pattern

Here are the proposed feeder plans for Huntsville City Schools:

Columbia High School

• Williams Elementary cafeteria, lobby, restroom, hallway, media center and gym renovations by 2025/2026
• Ridgecrest Elementary “major renovations” by 2028/2029
• A new P-8 school in Limestone county serving students in West Huntsville by 2028/2029

Grissom High School

• Grissom High cafeteria addition, relocation of CTE program and conversion of CTE rooms to more classroom space in 2026/2027.
• Farley Elementary new gym, classroom renovations, new hallway flooring, restroom renovations and various modernizations by 2027/2028.
• Weatherly Elementary classroom renovations by 2027/2028
• McDonnell Elementary gym pod replacement, new roof, bathroom renovations, parking and carline revisions by 2027/2028.
• Challenger Elementary will consolidate into a smaller portion of the existing building to allow for construction of new Challenger Middle School in 2027/2028. The new Challenger Middle School is expected to open in 2031.
• Mountain Gap Middle School will close and students will move to the new Challenger Middle School once it’s open in 2031.
• Mountain Gap Elementary will close and students will move to Weatherly and Challenger Elementary in 2032.

Huntsville High School

• Artemis Virtual Academy students to locate to Blossomwood Elementary in 2024/2025
• Chapman Elementary will close and consolidate into Blossomwood in 2025/2026
• Goldsmith-Schiffman to add 8 classrooms, storm shelter and restroom in 2026/2027
• Hampton Cove Middle to add 10 new classrooms, storm shelter and teacher workspace in 2026/2027
• Monte Sano Elementary to undergo classroom and cafeteria renovations in 2027/2028
• New Huntsville Middle School to be built on existing Huntsville Jr. High Campus in 2028/2029

Jemison High School/New Century

• New 6th grade wing on McNair Jr. High to allow students from Dawson, Highlands, Lakewood, and Rolling Hills to transition to McNair Middle (grades 6-8) in 2026/2027
• Dawson Elementary will see extensive renovations in 2027/2028
• Cafeteria and bathroom renovations at Rolling Hills, a new gym pod and other improvements in 2027/2028
• New Lakewood Elementary construction on existing ASFL campus in 2030/2031

Lee High School

• Chapman Elementary will close and consolidate into Blossomwood in 2025/2026
• New Chapman Middle School will be built and share a campus with a new magnet school in 2027/2028
• New Montview Elementary School will be built in 2027/2028

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