Closing schools ‘necessary’ as C.R. district aims to reduce budget by more than $10M

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CEDAR RAPIDS — Closing schools “is necessary” as the Cedar Rapids Community School District examines how to reduce its annual budget by more than $10 million after a decade of declining enrollment.

Options to reduce costs include consolidating four to six elementary schools, closing Truman Early Learning Center — a preschool program in the district — outsourcing non-teaching duties, and eliminating outside consulting contracts.

“No decisions have been made yet,” school board President Jennifer Neumann said at the board table Monday. “While ultimately, the board will need to approve the plan, we are asking district staff, families and taxpayers to provide critical and knowledgeable input to he