Community Survey Shows Priorities of Walkability, Safety, and Equitable Class Sizes

In January and February 2025, Lakewood City School District mailed out postcards to all Lakewood residents asking them to participate in planning the future of our elementary facilities. The survey closed on Feb 2. The compiled results from the district can be viewed here.

In this post, we have pulled charts directly from the presentation and added own own graphic mark-ups in green for further explanation.

This community survey is part of the school district's year-long process to examine whether or not to close and repurpose one or even two elementary schools. The school board may vote as soon as late May 2025 on whether to close and repurpose one or two of Grant, Lincoln, and Roosevelt Elementaries.

We do take issue with the context of the survey, as it does not clearly explain that the creation of a centralized pre-k would be at the expense of an elementary school. It also does not outline that a centralized pre-k would not offer summer care, which is what most working families need. Lastly, we have specifically asked the district why pre-k cannot be expanded to be offered in all current neighborhood elementary schools, especially to increase utilization rates, and our question went unanswered.

Though the survey context was muddy, the priorities still rose to the surface: Lakewood residents prioritize walkability, safety, and equitable class sizes. This can be achieved by simply redrawing boundary lines for the elementary schools. A commitment to safety, including hiring more crossing guards, aligns with the community's priorities. Centralized pre-k is not desired. Keep our seven neighborhood elementary schools.