20 Philadelphia schools could close next year. Here’s what you need to know

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The School District of Philadelphia announced a proposal to shutter 20 city schools. The closings would take effect in the 2027-2028 educational year and affect thousands of students. The proposed plan costs $2.8 billion, with $1 billion coming from the district’s resources and $1.8 billion from public and philanthropic funding.

How officials chose the impacted schools

The closures are part of the district’s Facilities Planning Process, launched in 2022 to evaluate buildings for safety and an accessible learning environment. The four standard assessment criteria included utilization score, capacity score and vulnerability score. Through this exercise, officials said they want to improve use of space, reduce student transitions and reinvest in schools “as community anchors” around the city.

Evaluators recommended closing 20 schools, designating six for co-locating or merging and upgrading 159 others. Of those 20, 18 are located in Northeast, Northwest or West Philadelphia.

The schools set to close are:

PreK-8 schools

• Robert Morris Elementary
• Samuel Pennypacker School
• John Welsh Elementary School
• James R. Ludlow School
• Laura W. Waring School
• Overbrook Elementary School
• Rudolph Blankenburg School
• Fitler Academics Plus

Middle schools

• General Louis Wagner Middle School
• Stetson Middle School
• Warren G. Harding Middle School
• William T. Tilden Middle School
• Academy for the Middle Years (AMY) at Northwest
• Russell Conwell Middle School

High schools

• Lankenau High School
• Motivation High School
• Paul Robeson High School
• Parkway Northwest High School
• Parkway West High School
• Penn Treaty High School

Officials said they gathered community input for the closures. In addition to 47 public listening sessions, the district launched a survey in November and received 8,000 responses representing every Philadelphia zip code.

Superintendent Tony B. Watlington acknowledged in a statement that some future decisions “will be difficult,” but thinks the city’s school district has developed a plan that both acknowledges public feedback and wholly improves the district.

How did we get here?

This process came on the heels of a landmark school-funding lawsuit, which found Pennsylvania’s school-funding system to be unconstitutional, leaving districts in poorer areas underfunded. In 2025, Philadelphia schools received $232 million more from the state than the previous year, but the district remains with considerably less money compared to its suburban counterparts.

Earlier this year, the district spent 40% of its reserves to cover a $300 million deficit. The proposed facilities plan would allow the district to consolidate and use resources more efficiently.

Pushback from the community

The announcement of closures was met with immediate opposition and concern from families, educators and elected officials. Parents voiced concerns about extended trips students will have to take when the school closest to them is shut down.

Arthur G. Steinberg, president of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers union, condemned the district’s lack of transparency throughout the Facilities Planning Process. In a statement, Steinberg noted that some of the proposed closures and mergers don’t make sense with the data he has, calling the discrepancy “unacceptable.”

City Councilmembers Jamie Gauthier, Jeffery “Jay” Young and Council President Kenyatta Johnson were among those critical of the district’s decision at last week’s City Council meeting, according to the Inquirer.

Gauthier called the decision “just a complete lack of thought and consideration for really important programs.”

Protests against the proposal have already sprouted up, with a rally planned for the Jan. 29 school board meeting. Protesters’ demands include more investment in the district’s current school portfolio and addressing overcrowding with new construction.

What are the next steps?

Decisions will not be finalized until later this winter, when the district will present the penultimate proposal to the city’s Board of Education for a final vote. If passed, transition teams will be created to help guide school staff and families.

Ahead of the vote, the district is scheduling another round of community conversations for feedback. These meetings will be held both virtually and in person almost every day in February; more information can be found on the district’s website.