The Olympia School District Board of Directors held its third and final campus-level public closure hearing on Oct. 19 inside a packed Madison Elementary School gymnasium.
The entryway to the gym was a community rally and support signs were handed out.
Students, alumni, and community members turned out to testify against Superintendent Patrick Murphy’s Policy 6883 consolidation proposal, which recommends shuttering Madison alongside McKenny and LP Brown elementary schools.
Following established protocol, board directors called student speakers first, giving young “Lion Cubs” the microphone to share how the proposed closure would impact their lives.
Rowan Edwards, a fifth-grade student, spoke on behalf of younger siblings and cousins who attend the school.
“Taking away neighborhood schools means taking away friendships and teachers who care about us,” Edwards testified. “This school has been in this neighborhood for a long time. Save our school.”
Graham Brannies, another Madison student, warned board members about the consequences of scattering students into larger regional buildings.
“The thought of Madison closing just makes me sad for all the kids who won’t get to experience this great school,” Brannies said. “Closing Madison will make other schools big. What if there is not enough room? The teachers will be overwhelmed.”
Emily, a third-grade student, added, “This school means way more than a bunch of money. Madison should stay open because it’s a community school.”
Former students also returned to their elementary alma mater to urge the board to preserve neighborhood campuses.
Evan Allan, a former Madison student now attending Avanti High School, recounted how staff made him feel supported from a young age.
“In kindergarten, I wore my kilt to school for the first time. I was seen, protected, and allowed to be myself,” Allan testified, crediting Principal Mr. DSK with teaching him goal setting. “This school is community personified. We need our small schools just as much as we need our big schools.”
Lauren Allan, an Avanti High School senior who attended Madison for nine years, shared how her early educators inspired her to pursue a teaching career.
“This school is where I first found my place where I belonged other than my family,” Lauren said. “Don’t take away current students’ place where they belong in their neighborhood school.”
A change of tune happened when a musical moment was shared, a former ninth-grade former Madison student named River Corum brought out a guitar to recreate the morning song Principal DSK played at the start of each school day, reminding the board of the joy and tradition embedded in the neighborhood campus.
“I just memorized this song today,” Corum said.
Naomi Mork explained that her daughter, a first grader with mild hearing loss, already struggles in a classroom of 23 students with a single teacher.
She played an audio recording called “Can’t Touch This,” simulating classroom decibel levels directly into the microphone for board members.
“According to Stanford, the average spike noise level for 23 six-year-olds playing is 80 to 87 db. My daughter has mild hearing loss and is trying her best to learn with this level of sound in her classroom,” Mork testified. “As a therapist, we’re big on experiences. That was the decibel equivalent of my daughter’s classroom with 23 children. These kids cannot learn. You are asking them to do something impossible.”
Hannah Middlebrook, an educator and parent of three Madison Elementary students, challenged district leadership to evaluate optional and choice programs before shuttering neighborhood schools. “If you are saying schools have to close, then have the courage to put optional programs on the table before dismantling the guaranteed neighborhood schools that serve every child,” Middlebrook testified. “And if you don’t have the courage to do that, it’s past time to stop telling this community closures are inevitable.”
In an interview during the rally outside the gym, Alessandro Tinonga, a former California school district employee who relocated his family to Olympia, questioned why the district is choosing school closures over enrollment recruitment.
“I worked for a California school district and so did my dad for several years. We relocated out of state to be part of Olympia specifically because the school district has some of the best schools in the state,” Tananga said. “I don’t understand why the superintendent needs to use a nuclear option to close down schools for something that’s not even a problem yet.”
Parent speakers emphasized that Madison provides critical stability for lower-income families, homeless students, and children receiving specialized services.
Monday’s session marked the completion of the required individual school hearings mandated by Board Policy 6883.
The school board will hold a work session on Nov. 5 before taking a final vote on the consolidation recommendation on Nov. 12.
