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Pittsburgh Public Schools Board of Directors

Families speak out against the school board’s decision to move forward with the Future Ready plan.

Written by Lucas Griffin

The Pittsburgh Public Schools Board of Directors’ decision in May to close up to 12 schools as it moves forward with the Future Ready plan did not end the opposition of parents and community members.

The June 22nd public hearing included community members who spoke out against both the plan and the conduct of the board members who approved it.

Vanessa Dagavarian—whose daughter attends Woolslair K-5 in Bloomfield, which is slated to close—questioned the legitimacy of the plan. “Voting yes on a plan that the vast majority of the public did not trust is not democratic,” she said. “It’s incredibly arrogant to feel that in five months’ time you know better than the community at large.”

Many of the comments during the June public hearing focused on May’s legislative session, when the plan was approved. Multiple speakers said that a school board member had laughed at PPS parent Jazlynn Worthy, who lost her composure at the meeting.

Worthy addressed the board directly at the June hearing: “Accountability does not end after voting to close our schools, and shattering the communities in them and around them. It continues every day that we are forced to live with the consequences of your decisions.”

She added that “trust has been broken” between PPS families and the school board, and said half of the school board, representing the even-numbered districts, is up for reelection next year. “When trust is broken, voters, you guys have the right to demand change,” she said.

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Pittsburgh Public Schools Board of Directors

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