Bald Eagle Area will keep all schools open for 2026-27 as long-term planning continues
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- The Bald Eagle Area School District will keep all schools open for the 2026-27 year.
- Long-term planning continues as the district works to counter enrollment declines.
- Future public meetings could lead to significant changes for the district.
The Bald Eagle Area School District will not close any schools ahead of the 2026-27 academic year, officials announced Thursday.
The decision to keep all buildings open arrives as officials work through a long-term planning process that could significantly alter the shape of the district. Those talks, fueled by a recently conducted feasibility study, could still lead to the eventual shuttering of schools and relocation of students as the district works to counter enrollment declines, among other challenges.
The Bald Eagle Area’s district is also unlikely to move third, fourth and fifth grade students to Wingate Elementary School for at least the 2026-27 academic year, officials said. Such a move has repeatedly been floated as a potential first step toward consolidation.
District officials are expected to review incoming kindergarten attendance zones and building assignments at future school board work sessions, which are open to the public. Bald Eagle Area’s school board already moved to revise the district’s school choice policy, which previously allowed parents to request their students attend an elementary school outside their residential boundary.
At its most recent meeting, the school board received a presentation outlining the benefits and challenges offered by several options for consolidation. Board discussion, which lasted for roughly one hour, did not result in the elimination of any option from consideration.
Tina Greene, the school board president, said Bald Eagle Area officials will continue discussions related to long-term planning at future school board meetings.
“We will strive to make well-informed decisions for our students, staff and communities,” Greene said in a statement. “The board continues to seek and gather information in an effort to move the district forward, providing the best educational opportunities for our students now and in the future while being fiscally responsible with taxpayer dollars.”
Public discussions surrounding long-term planning follow the completion of a wide-ranging feasibility study conducted by Crabtree, Rohrbaugh & Associates. The study examined district enrollment, facilities, future financial obstacles and potential options for consolidation, among other topics.
Enrollment is a key sticking point for the Bald Eagle Area district, which has lost roughly a third of its students across the first quarter of the 21st century. Approximately 2,200 students attended Bald Eagle Area schools during the 2001-02 academic year, but current district enrollment sits at 1,476 students.
Declines in enrollment leave Bald Eagle Area schools with significant underutilized capacities, according to the study. When comparing each school’s student capacity to enrollment figures from the Pennsylvania Department of Education, the report found the district’s elementary schools and the Bald Eagle Area Junior-Senior High School are utilizing roughly 65% and 54% of their total capacities, respectively.
Class sizes vary widely across the district’s four elementary schools, which account for six core classrooms per grade: three for each grade at Wingate Elementary and one per grade at the Port Matilda, Mountaintop and Howard elementary schools. Average class sizes at Wingate Elementary range from 17 to 26 students, while Howard Elementary has just six students in its current fifth grade class and nine students in its current kindergarten class.
At May 13’s meeting, the school board reviewed a wide range of potential plans for its buildings. These included options to keep all schools open, bring some full grades to Wingate Elementary, combine one of the outlying elementary schools with Wingate Elementary or even combine all elementary schools at the Wingate campus.
Christopher Santini, the superintendent, said Bald Eagle Area officials will work to develop the best possible plan for the district’s long-term future.
“From the start of this process, our goal has been to proactively plan for the future needs of our district before finances or other factors force us to do so,” Santini said in a statement. “Getting this right is more important than getting it done quickly. We will continue the work to plan for the future educational needs of our students and district.”
Board presentations related to the current long-term planning process, including feasibility study data, are available online at beasd.org/page/district-rebalancing-and-future-planning.
Bald Eagle Area’s school board typically meets on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month to conduct work sessions and voting meetings.
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