In Swift Reversal, Minneapolis Public Schools Superintendent Cancels Plan To Close Schools

By Melissa Whitler, Minnesota Reformer

October 14, 2026

Minneapolis Public Schools Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams said she would no longer recommend closing any schools next school year, less than a month after first proposing closures. Board Chair Collin Beachy said that he would not allow any resolutions to close schools for the 2027-28 school year to be placed on the board agenda this year.

The state’s third-largest school district runs 59 school buildings for approximately 29,000 students. The district recently analyzed buildings and determined more than half are considered “under-utilized,” or 70% of capacity or less. The district operates its buildings with significantly fewer students per building than other large Minnesota districts.

The announcement surprised some board members, including Director Sharon El-Amin, who said she was “blindsided” by the superintendent’s announcement at the beginning of the meeting.

After seven community meetings over the prior two weeks, Sayles-Adams said the community made clear the district should not close schools. Sayles-Adams said this will mean the district will continue to spread its limited resources across schools in ways that do not provide equitable access to opportunities for all students.

The district has not named specific inequities, but in recent years, parents have reported elementary students without access to music or art specialists, and middle and high school students who do not have access to world languages, music or art electives. The district’s high schools also have varying access to advanced coursework.

By closing schools and concentrating resources in fewer buildings, the district’s plans would have guaranteed all students access to music, art and physical education in elementary schools, and diverse electives in middle and high schools, according to Sayles-Adams. The plan would have also provided all schools with academic interventionists to support students who are not meeting grade-level standards. Currently, academic interventionists are only available at schools with the federal low-income designation of Title I.

The district is dealing with long-term fiscal issues related to declining enrollment — state aid is dependent on enrollment — and rising labor costs.

The Minnesota Reformer is an independent, nonprofit news organization dedicated to keeping Minnesotans informed and unearthing stories other outlets can’t or won’t tell..