Rural families could bear the brunt of proposed Poudre School District closures

LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. — Poudre School District officials shared a proposal Sept. 25 to close nine schools beginning in fall 2027 in response to a yearslong pattern of declining enrollment. The Board of Education will vote on the proposal Oct. 27. 

Under the proposal, Beattie, Irish, Johnson, Putnam, Livermore, Red Feather Lakes, Stove Prairie and Timnath Elementary schools, as well as Blevins Middle School, would close. Centennial High School and Poudre Community Academy would consolidate. 

“There are simply fewer children being born in our community, the cost of living is high, fewer families are residing here, and that trend is expected to continue,” superintendent Brian Kingsley said in a letter to families, staff and students. 

Statewide enrollment in Colorado public schools dropped by more than 10,000 students this school year. Although parts of Colorado are continuing to grow, adults are having fewer children and more students are opting for online and homeschool programs. In Poudre School District, enrollment dropped by 1.4% over the past year. 

Of the 11 schools on the chopping block, parents with children at the district’s so-called Mountain Schools — Stove Prairie, Livermore and Red Feather Lakes Elementary — located in rural Larimer County, argue that their children could bear the brunt of the proposed cuts. 

“Our hearts go out to the people in town that are losing their neighborhood schools, but having a child move from one school to another that is less than half a mile away is not nearly as disruptive as what they're proposing for us,” said Sarah Rowan, PTO president at Stove Prairie Elementary, located in the mountains west of Fort Collins. 

Stove Prairie, which opened in 1896, is the state’s oldest operating one-room school. It currently serves 21 students, as well as roughly 10 preschool students. Jenna Luna, a parent whose children attend Stove Prairie Elementary, said that learning of the plan to close her kids’ school brought her to tears. 

“It’s a community hub,” Luna said. 

To get to school, Luna drives her kids three miles down a rough dirt road to a bus stop on Rist Canyon road. The whole commute takes 19 minutes. Under the proposed plan, her kids would attend Cache La Poudre elementary school, located in Laporte, which is 30 minutes by car. 

The district has yet to release details about what transportation would be available to students. Although PSD’s proposal includes estimates for how long new bus routes would take, parents argue the estimates are inaccurate and fail to account for how long it would take families to reach the bus stop, as well as weather delays and changing road conditions. 

Students currently attending Red Feather Lakes Elementary could face a 45-minute bus ride to reach their new school, according to the district’s estimates.