Baltimore County Board of Education will vote on future of Golden Ring Middle School in May
BALTIMORE -- The Baltimore County Board of Education is setting the record straight about the fate of the Golden Ring Middle School.
The chair of the board said at a public hearing on Wednesday night that they have yet to make a decision on the school's future.
Parents are already voicing their concerns though.
They raised those concerns during the hearing and called on the school board of education to take into consideration the students and families who were planning on attending Golden Ring Middle School for the 2024-25 school year.
Parent Melissa Moore said her children were excited to attend the school, but now, she's scrambling to figure out where they will go next.
The announcement of the proposed closure comes as school officials are conducting a boundary study that impacts middle schools in the central and northeast areas.
The study looks closely at Golden Ring Middle School as well as the possibility of building a new school nearby and moving 900 students there for the 2024-25 school year.
Moore says she feels the opinions of parents weren't taken into consideration.
"They should've had this whole public hearing before the boundary process took place so the community could have known about it before," Moore said.
Board Chair Jane Lichter said that if an upcoming vote to shudder the doors of Golden Ring Middle School does not receive enough support, then the entire boundary study would need to be redone.
Lichter told WJZ that she could empathize with those parents who are frustrated with how the boundary study overlaps with the closure process.
"We did hear what the speakers said tonight about the order, and the order may need to be looked at," she said. "The policy may need to be altered so this announcing about the closing would have come prior."
At the public hearing, some parents argued for the school to stay open.
They asked the board to consider the students who planned to join their friends at Golden Ring Middle School.
Others suggested that the school be turned into a recreation center.
"There is a need for the community to have something there if it is decided the school closed," said Cory Johns, with the Board of Recreation and Parks.
That vote on the future will happen on May 16, and it will be followed by a public hearing for a recommended boundary change on May 17.