Roughly 100 people gathered at Hawthorne Middle/High School on Wednesday night for the first community input session related to phase two of Alachua County Public Schools’ (ACPS) “Our Schools – Future Ready” comprehensive planning initiative.  

The district has been working with Gainesville-based engineering and planning firm JBrown Professional Group, or JBPro, to implement a three-phase plan. This plan, launched in November 2025, addresses key issues such as enrollment and school capacity, transportation, and educational programs.  

A November 2025 ACPS release said the plan would “outline both short-term strategies for the start of the 2026-27 school year and a long-term roadmap to support strong schools across the district.” 

Phase one was held in November and December, focusing on listening to community members across Alachua County. This was done in large part through eight community input sessions that took place on school campuses throughout the county.  

Project staff took the feedback that was gathered during the plan’s first phase to form 12 proposed guiding principles, which were revealed at a Jan. 12 School Board of Alachua County (SBAC) workshop.  

According to a presentation at that workshop, the guiding principles “represent opinions and input from the community; impact the foundation for plans, drafts and boundaries; and align board policy with community input.” The principles do not “represent predetermined plans or boundaries, represent final decisions or establish policy or require specific outcomes.” 

The results of the community engagement and the reveal of the guiding principles marked the completion of phase one of the project. 

At the Jan. 12 workshop, Kathie Ebaugh, a planning director for JBPro, who is also serving as the project manager for the Future Ready initiative, said phase two, which is taking place throughout February, would focus on moving from vision to evaluation. 

“The project team and the district staff will complete a detailed review of data related to enrollment trends, school capacity, facilities, transportation, educational priorities – all guided by the principles established in phase one,” she said at the workshop. “This work will include a conference analysis of current attendance boundaries and development of up to three draft boundary scenarios.” 

ACPS released nine draft school boundary maps on Monday – three each for elementary, middle and high schools. A link to the draft maps can be found here (https://www.alachuaschools.net/o/acps/page/ourschoolsfutureready).  

The meeting at HMHS on Wednesday was the first opportunity for community members to offer feedback on the proposed draft boundary maps.  

The session, attended by residents, ACPS and JBPro staff, and county and school board officials, was supposed to start in the auditorium with a presentation on draft alternatives before moving to the media center for additional information or one-on-one feedback. Instead, the entire meeting took place in the auditorium, with much of the time dedicated to listening and taking questions from concerned citizens. 

Around 10 Hawthorne residents attended an SBAC meeting on Jan. 20 to also share concerns related to the planning initiative, with citizens emphasizing the importance of community engagement in the plan and the need for safety and reliable transportation.  

During the meeting, the board also addressed rumors about HMHS potentially closing or combining, saying that no such decision had been made. 

“There has been no decision made or no discussion that we’ve had collectively about closing any schools,” Board Member Tina Certain said at the meeting.  

Concerns over potential school closings in Hawthorne and other places in the county were brought up again at the input session.  

District staff and project leaders said that in all the draft scenarios, HMHS and Shell Elementary School remain open and stay as they are. 

While no changes would occur with the Hawthorne schools under the draft maps, there would be changes when it comes to elementary and middle schools. 

Jackie Johnson, a spokesperson for ACPS, told Mainstreet in an email reply on Thursday morning that in all three of the elementary draft scenarios, Foster Elementary School would close. Additionally, Johnson said Oak View Middle School would become a K-8 school, taking in most of the students from Newberry Elementary School. 

“This is required because of the conversion of Newberry Elementary to a charter (school),” she said. “We cannot zone students to a school we don’t operate.” 

In the three elementary draft maps, Johnson said Lincoln Middle School would also become a K-8 to include students from Williams Elementary School, which would close.  

“This is projected to take place in the fall of 2028, so the campus can be renovated to accommodate this change, including creating separation between the elementary and middle school populations,” she said. 

In the three elementary draft scenarios, Johnson said Duval Early Learning Academy, which serves pre-K and voluntary pre-K students, would also close, with students moving to Lake Forest Elementary School. 

“Currently, students at Duval come from a variety of school zones, including Lake Forest, Williams, Idylwild [Elementary School], etc.,” she said.  

Under two of the draft school boundary maps – A and C – Johnson said Rawlings Elementary School would close. In draft maps B and C, she noted that Mebane Middle School would become a K-8 school, estimated by the fall of 2028. 

Johnson said students currently zoned for Alachua Elementary School who live north of U.S. Highway 441 would attend Mebane K-8. She added that Irby Elementary School would become a pre-K through fifth-grade school “for all elementary students who live south of 441.” The students would attend Mebane for middle school. 

No middle or high schools would close under any of the draft school boundary maps, Johnson said.  

In addition to concerns over school closures, citizens present for the input session shared remarks on the current state of facilities and grounds at HMHS. They also emphasized the need for more educational programs at the school, particularly trade programs. 

“We’re in a country area right here,” said resident Zachary Hand, who serves as a volunteer at HMHS. “A lot of these students want to see more trades – things that are going to help them outside of high school.” 

Patton acknowledged the feedback from the residents, saying that they would capture that input. 

Community input sessions will continue throughout February for community members to offer feedback. All meetings begin at 5:30 p.m.  

The schedule of those meetings includes: 

• 5:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 5, at High Springs Community School (19559 Main St., High Springs)  

• 5:30 p.m., Monday, Feb. 9, at Buchholz High School (5510 NW 27^th Ave., Gainesville)  

• 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 10, at Oak View Middle School (1203 SW 250^th St., Newberry)  

• 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 11, at Eastside High School (1201 SE 43^rd St., Gainesville)  

• 5:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 12, at Kanapaha Middle School (5005 SW 75^th St., Gainesville)  

• 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 17, at Mebane Middle School (16401 NW 140^th St., Alachua)  

• 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 18, at Westwood Middle School (3215 NW 15^th Ave., Gainesville) 

A final comprehensive plan is expected to be presented to the School Board of Alachua County (SBAC) for consideration and a vote on Thursday, March 12. 

Nick Anschultz is a Report for America corps member and writes about education for Mainstreet Daily News. This position is supported by local donations through the Community Catalyst for Local Journalism Fund at the Community Foundation of North Central Florida.