At a special meeting held prior to their first school board meeting of 2025, the South Williamsport Area School began deliberations over the possible shuttering of Rommelt Elementary School Monday night.

“As president of the school board, I want to first acknowledge that we are convened for a difficult and deeply important discussion regarding the potential closure of Rommelt Elementary School,” board president Todd Engel said, acknowledging the widespread implications the closure would have on the school and broader community.

“Our goal today is to engage in an open, respectful and transparent dialog. We’re committed to hearing from all stakeholders, understanding their concerns and perspectives of those impacted, and carefully considering all available information before any final decisions are made,” he continued.

“This is time for a thoughtful reflection, input and collaboration as we navigate the challenges and opportunities ahead. We understand the potential closure of school is a topic filled with emotional concern, and we are here to listen,” Engel said.

“I encourage everyone to participate constructively, keeping in mind the importance of maintaining respect and civility throughout our discussion. We value each voice in this process and your input is essential to making a decision that reflects the best interests of our entire district,” Engel said.

State school code authorizes school boards to close down any schools within their districts and reassign students and staff, however, they can only do so after holding a public meeting at least three months prior to a decision on whether to close, district assistant solicitor David T. Sterngold explained.

“The board may not make the decision to close the school until at least three months following tonight’s hearing, which means that a decision to close the school cannot be made until on or after April 14, 2025,” he said.

A study begun in 2018 by McKissick Associates Architecture and Larson Design Group found several issues that would need to be addressed to update the building which was built in 1928, with a replacement value of $14,121,924, superintendent Dr. Eric Briggs said during his presentation.

Among the observations made were that the 18-year-old roof had failing skylights, that the also 18-year-old generator had not been replaced since installation and the 18-year-old gymnasium was undersized, according to Briggs’ presentation.

Other issues to be addressed include replacement of the original kitchen equipment, installation of LED lights and site water and retaining wall repairs.

Discussions with McKissick on a host of considerations as part of an ongoing district-wide facility study continued, but were put on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic, resuming in the fall of 2021, Briggs explained.

“The district felt it was important to look at all options from a physical facility standpoint, and how improvements would impact the quality of education for students in the classroom,” he said, noting that feasibility studies indicate a long-term decrease in population and enrollment within the district.

Numbers from the Pennsylvania Department of Education indicate for the 2019-2020 school year, enrollment was at 1,279 students, and steadily dropped each year to the current level of 1,171 students as of January 1, 2025, Briggs said.

“When we get down to 2033-2034, they’re projecting around 830 students,” he added.

Three options are currently being considered by the district.

The first includes maintaining the current kindergarten through fourth grade, fifth and sixth grade and seventh through 12th grade configurations. The second option was to create a kindergarten through fifth at Central Elementary and a sixth through 12th grade campus at the Junior/Senior High School, which would eliminate the fifth through sixth grade building, which is Rommelt Elementary School. A third option is the creation of separate kindergarten through sixth grade and seventh through 12th grade campuses, again eliminating Rommelt.

Some of the ultimate goals of the project include a clustering of classrooms for each grade, having sinks within the counters for in the first grade classrooms, a specialty area for STEM, a cafeteria that fits at least two full grade levels and a full-sized gymnasium.

Discussions are ongoing over the future use of the building should Rommelt cease to operate as a school, Briggs said.

Previous options floated included housing alternate education programs, borough offices and Pre-K Counts, a state initiative that provides full and half-day pre-kindergarten for three to four year olds.

While the current construction at Central Elementary is expected to be completed by the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year, some areas of the high school may still see active work, though Briggs stressed that middle school and high school students will be kept on separate floors for the most part.

“The only time a sixth or eighth grader generally should have to come to the second floor are for the cafeteria, guidance suite and the nurse’s office,” he said.

Central Elementary will receive an additional administrator, with a core focus of the two on academic and behavioral expectations.

Additional questions to be addressed by the board and school administration include what clubs will look like for sixth graders once they’re at the high school, how recess could operate for for fifth graders, how band and chorus would work for fifth and sixth grade student and whether middle and high school students will have separate entrances and exits at the high school.

“We will push these things publicly as we get closer to the date,” Briggs assured.