Henry County is considering closing Campbell Court Elementary School due to declining enrollment and the financial strain of needed construction and operational costs.
Students at Campbell Court would be split between two other elementary schools, Stanleytown and Sanville, with implementation during the 2029-30 school year, if approved. The consolidation would save the school system $6.6 million in capital projects and an expected $7.5 million in the first five years after closing Campbell Court, said Superintendent Amy Blake-Lewis at Thursday’s school board meeting.
The board approved a motion allowing staff to begin necessary research, including evaluating facility improvements at Sanville and Stanleytown, attendance boundaries, transportation, staffing and instructional needs. Potential construction at the two elementary schools would start in January 2028, Blake-Lewis said.
The proposal comes as school systems across the region make decisions to consolidate. Others include Bedford County and Buchanan County.
In Henry County, the staff proposes consolidation due to declining enrollment and therefore a decrease in funding. Since 2020, the school system has seen a decrease of nearly 800 students, which means a $15 million decrease in annual funding, said Benjamin Boone, the assistant superintendent of operations and administrative services.
The decrease in student enrollment is partially due to population decline in Henry County, Boone said. The county has seen a decline of about 5,000 people since 2010, according to U.S. Census data.
Sanville, Stanleytown and Campbell Court elementaries have seen a combined decrease of 261 students in the past 15 years, but operational costs have stayed the same, Blake-Lewis said. The three schools have a total budget of nearly $9 million, she said.
Plus, Campbell Court needs an estimated $6.6 million in capital improvements, including an elevator, HVAC replacement and a new roof, Blake-Lewis said. The school system has already spent millions on facility needs at Sanville and Stanleytown, she said.
This wouldn’t be the first time Henry County has consolidated schools. School board member Sherry Vestal said when she started at the school system in 1988, there were 15,000 students in 21 schools. Now, there are about 6,200 students in 13 schools.
During a public hearing Thursday, parents expressed concern that consolidating schools would bring larger class sizes, less individualized learning and an increased workload for teachers.
“We’re setting everyone up for failure,” said Ashley McAlexander, the mother of a first grader at Campbell Court. “We’ve got the best teachers in the best communities.”
McAlexander said these schools have “the gift of an optimal class size,” with her son being in a class of 18 students.
Blake-Lewis said the largest class size in Henry County is 18 students — even at Meadowview Elementary, which is more than double the size of Sanville, Stanleytown or Campbell Court.
But Sanville and Rich Acres — the county’s smallest elementary schools — were two of four schools considered distinguished, according to the Virginia Department of Education school quality profile. The other two were the county’s high schools.
Blake-Lewis said staff looked at all schools before making the proposal, including building conditions, enrollment trends and school proximity to one another. Campbell Court is located between Sanville and Stanleytown, with both schools being within 10 minutes of Campbell Court.
School staff will now evaluate necessary facility improvements, attendance boundaries, transportation, staffing and instructional needs to bring more information to the school board before any decisions are made.
