LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Just months after Christian Academy of Louisville (CAL) announced it's closing its Southwest campus, parents are taking matters into their own hands.
Christian Academy School System (CASS) shared it's plans to consolidate CAL Southwest on Oct. 19 during a Zoom meeting with parents. In an additional letter to parents, school leaders pointed to enrollment for the reason why.
"Currently we have about 250 students that attend this location. Max capacity I believe is 400 and so they were looking for that enrollment number to increase," parent Sarah Davis said. "It came to a complete shock to all of the staff members and the students. There were no warning signs the school would be closing."
Two of Davis' children attend CAL Southwest. She says since the announcement, school leaders have encouraged families to enroll at Christian Academies in Middletown and New Albany.
According to a letter, the school already has a transition team to help with the process. However, parents aren't buying it.
"This community needs our school. To encourage families to go to Southern Indiana is a big lost not only for the south end of Louisville, but for Louisville as a whole and Kentucky," Davis said.
This is why she said parents created a three page proposal asking for a three-year grace period to increase enrollment and raise money to cover deficits. If Christian Academy still chooses to consolidate after that, parents propose a new school take over this location.
"We're asking for grace," Davis said. "A sustainable plan that's going to work for our community. that's not going to rip these students out of everything they ever known"
In the meantime, parents are asking for 1,000 signatures on an online petition, 300 families to commit to the southwest campus and a $3 million pledge.
Davis said she knows they're "living on a prayer," but they plan to hold on to the very end.
WHAS11 reached out to CASS on Friday, in a statement schools leaders said:
"We are actively moving forward with the announced consolidation plans for our Southwest campus. We are aware that a few parents are petitioning other families but the School Board has not been presented with any viable proposals. We continue to partner with our current employees and families who want to transition to our Middletown or New Albany campuses. These efforts include prioritized admissions and job opportunities, 3-year tuition arrangements, and free bus transportation. We continue to pray for discernment for each of our families and employees through this transition."
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