Port O’Connor, Seadrift parents organize opposition to CCISD school changes

PORT O’CONNOR — Twenty-nine parents from Port O’Connor and Seadrift gathered Wednesday afternoon at King Fisher Beach Park Pavilion to coordinate opposition to proposed Calhoun County Independent School District plans that would close Port O’Connor Elementary School and move Seadrift School seventh- and eighth-grade students to Travis Middle School.

The meeting, held at 3:30 p.m. June 10, was organized by parents of students attending Port O’Connor Elementary. Several parents attended with their children and expressed concerns about the proposals, citing what they described as a lack of transparency and community involvement in the district’s decision-making process.

“There’s no transparency to this,” Port O’Connor parent Melissa Gee said. “It feels slimy, for lack of a better word. Like they tried to do this without anyone knowing. We have not had the opportunity to file grievances or have these conversations.”

Krysten Guerra, a single mother and U.S. Coast Guard member, said the proposed closure would affect a decision she made to remain in the area because of the school and community.

“It is the reason I chose to stay here. Once I got here, I fell in love with it,” Guerra said. “I’m transferring in a couple of months and I could have chosen anywhere the Coast Guard could send me, and I chose Corpus Christi so I could be able to commute and keep my kids in this community.”

Parents also discussed plans to attend a June 15 meeting at which CCISD trustees could take action on the proposals. Some attendees talked about creating a Facebook group for families who would be affected by the changes.

Organizers also shared information about two online petitions. As of publication, one petition opposing the closure of Port O’Connor Elementary had received 398 signatures, while other petitions opposing the proposed grade-level consolidation in Seadrift have received almost 500 signatures.

Port O’Connor parent Rebecca Lovett said she would consider removing her children from the district if the elementary school is closed.

“If I would’ve known that this school was not going to be open, I would’ve applied for the voucher school to have other options or potentially send my child to private school or to home school them,” Lovett said. “But the window has closed. We missed it for this year. They chose to wait till the end so that we no longer have an option to send our kids anywhere else.”

Several parents said they plan to address the school board directly and ask trustees to delay any decision on the proposed closure. Others questioned whether closing the school is necessary to address budget deficits and expressed concerns about the impact the change could have on students.

“I cannot imagine living and raising my children anywhere else, and I understand Port O’Connor goes through other schools and that they will go somewhere else after the elementary school, but our school is the foundation of their education,” Gee said. “My kindergartner is begging to go back to school already. Every time we drive by school, she’s almost in tears. That’s how much she loves it.”

The CCISD Board of Trustees will hold a public hearing at 5:30 p.m. June 15 in the district board room, 525 N. Commerce St. in Port Lavaca. A regular board meeting will follow at 6 p.m.

The petitions can be viewed at tinyurl.com/yhhsufk8 for Port O’Connor and tinyurl.com/4fz3f2my for Seadrift.