Latest news with #DowntownCollegePreparatory
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
San Jose's first charter school to close after graduation
SAN JOSE, Calif. - It's the end of an era for San Jose's first charter school. El Primero High School, along with two other campuses operated by Downtown College Preparatory, will permanently close their doors after graduation next month. What we know "It was wonderful. I've been going here since like fifth grade," said Aaron Ledezma, a graduating senior who will attend San Francisco State University in the fall. "I still do have the time to enjoy it, but for other people not as much." For Ledezma, the closure brings mixed emotions, pride in what he's accomplished, and concern for his friends in lower grades. "I do have some junior friends. Yeah, like, they are trying to find new schools," said Ledezma. Downtown College Preparatory, based in San Jose, announced earlier this year it will also shutter El Camino Middle School and Alum Rock Middle School. Last year, the network closed Alum Rock High School. In a January letter, the school's board of directors cited declining enrollment and a resulting "precarious financial position" as the driving forces behind the closures. Sal Williams, an English teacher at El Primero and president of the school's teachers' union, said he would like to see more government oversight over charter schools in general. "One of the reasons we're closing is the building behind you," said Williams. "They took out a bond that, unfortunately, the bills caught up with them, and they're having to close the entire organization." The closures will result in the layoffs of around 100 teachers and staff. "Some are still interviewing," said Williams. Williams said faculty are struggling to find new positions that match the school's close-knit community and its focus on supporting largely low-income students of color in preparing for and succeeding in college. Among the approximately 950 students affected is Jackie Ortiz's family. Her two children attend one of the closing schools. "I love charters." said Ortiz. "These kinds of schools have more programs to help the kids." She's managed to find a new school for her 12-year-old, but is still searching for a good fit for her 13-year-old. Graduation at El Primero High is scheduled for June 6. All Downtown College Prep schools will officially close on June 30.
San Francisco Chronicle
19-05-2025
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
San Jose's first charter school to close after 25 years, laying off 99 employees
San Jose's first charter school, founded in 2000 to serve low-income students of color, will permanently close at the end of the current school year, resulting in 99 employee layoffs. Downtown College Preparatory will shutter its administrative offices and three sites — Alum Rock Middle School, El Camino Middle School and El Primero High School — on June 30, according to notices filed last week with the California Employment Development Department. The decision, announced earlier this year by the school's board of directors, stems from ongoing enrollment declines and deepening financial instability. 'Unfortunately, with the current limited financial resources and considering the overall trend of lower enrollment in San Jose, the Board made the extremely difficult decision to close all three schools,' the board wrote in a public letter. DCP currently serves about 950 students across its three campuses, but enrollment has steadily dropped in recent years — a trend seen throughout the Bay Area following the COVID-19 pandemic. 'Over the course of the last several years, the combined enrollment of the DCP organization has suffered significant declines, which has put the organization in a precarious financial position,' the board said. The network began downsizing in 2024, closing its Alum Rock High School campus after enrollment fell by 30% since 2019. At the time, CEO Pete Settelmayer said the campus's 205 students would not generate sufficient state funding to cover operating costs. DCP's closure comes just weeks after a similar announcement from The Primary School in East Palo Alto, a tuition-free private school backed by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. That school, which also serves low-income Latino students and combines education with health care and family services, will close after the 2025-26 academic year. According to the organization, 56% of its alumni have graduated or are on track to graduate from college within six years — four times the national average for similar student demographics. As the academic year winds down, DCP leaders say their focus remains on supporting students through the school's closure.
