Poudre School District Board Votes to Close Six Schools, Spare Three Mountain Campuses

Poudre School District families will see six schools close starting July 1, 2027, while three mountain elementary schools originally slated for closure will remain open. The district board cast final votes on the reorganization, and one school, Timnath Elementary, faces a conditional closure in 2028.

For months, parents and community members attended board meetings and submitted public comments opposing a plan that initially called for closing nine schools. The board removed Livermore, Red Feather, and Stove Prairie elementary schools from the list. The remaining closures were distributed across two years.

Timnath Elementary remains on the closure list for 2028, but the town can stop it. The town's mayor requested the board pause the closure, and the Timnath town council unanimously supported a joint task force funded with at least $25,000 from each of the next two city budgets. Parent Jamie Philbeck said the school is functioning and excelling, and questioned why students would ride a 50-minute bus when a school exists locally. Philbeck also noted 1,000 new homes are expected within the school's boundaries over the next three years.

The closure calendar begins with the School Choice window, which opens November 4, 2026 and closes December 16, 2026. Students from closing schools receive priority consideration in the application process. In early 2027, the district will announce a future location for the consolidation of Centennial High School and Poudre Community Academy, which will form a new school.

On July 1, 2027, Beattie Elementary closes with students reassigned to Lopez and Bennett; Johnson Elementary closes with students going to Olander and McGraw; Putnam Elementary closes with students assigned to Dunn and Tavelli; Blevins Middle School closes with students moving to Webber and Lincoln; and a Bacon Elementary boundary change takes effect. The district is developing a unified Dual Language program during the 2026-27 and 2027-28 school years, scheduled to launch in the 2028-2029 school year.

On July 1, 2028, Irish Escuela Bilingüe closes with students reassigned to Cache la Poudre and Bauder. Timnath Elementary is also scheduled to close that day, with students moving to Linton and Bamford, unless the town secures funding for a new school by November 2027. The district has said it will provide more transition support details in the months ahead.

The School Choice window for affected families runs November 4 through December 16, 2026.