Cinebar

Cinebar, WA · Events
Chronicle
The Chronicle
The Olympian
everafterinthewoods.com
Chronicle
The Olympian
Parents sue Olympia School District after decision to close three schools
Five parents who are attorneys filed a Notice of Appeal Nov. 13 in Thurston County Superior Court after the Olympia School District Board of Directors voted the night before to close Madison, McKenny and LP Brown elementary schools. District parent Marissa Smith shared a media statement and the appeal with The Olympian on Nov. 13. “The parents allege that the district failed to meet the minimum requirements in state law for public engagement,” according to the media statement. “According to the lawsuit, the school board cannot close any school until it first adopts a formal policy explaining how citizens will be involved in the development of the closure proposal. The parents argue that the school board’s current policy does not meet the statutory requirements for citizen engagement and therefore is invalid.” Parents are also concerned about Superintendent Patrick Murphy presenting a closure proposal without any formal request from the school board, according to the media statement. “The lawsuit cites a school board policy that says a closure proposal cannot proceed until the school board publicly requests a written analysis of the proposal from the district,” according to the media statement. The Olympian has reached out to district spokesperson Conor Schober,