Knox County Schools looks at closures, job cuts to reduce costs

What This Story Is About

• Knox County Schools is looking at ways to balance its budget. At last week’s annual board workshop, district staff previewed several strategies. School Board member Brandy Jenkins said no closure plan exists and that the discussions are at the beginning. The one action the district says it intends to take is a $4 million cut to district office spending through position reductions.

Why It Matters

• Jenkins named Corryton, Gap Creek, Maynard and South Knoxville elementary schools as schools with fewer than 200 students that came up in the talks. Jenkins said smaller schools can cost KCS about $20,000 per student, compared with $8,000 to $9,000 at larger schools.

What Happens Next

• The school board meets Nov. 2.
• Jenkins said there is no timeline for decisions.
• Rysewyk said impacted district office staff will be notified before the Nov. 9 retirement incentive deadline.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Knox County Schools is looking at strategies to balance its budget, and School Board member Brandy Jenkins said closing smaller elementary schools was one idea discussed at last week’s annual board workshop.

The school board discussed a list of ways to save money. Jenkins, who represents District 9, said district staff presented about 10 options and were gauging the board’s thoughts on whether to explore them further.

“I do want to make it clear, we don’t want to close the schools, that we did not say that that’s happening,” Jenkins said. “It was just one of the things that was mentioned.”

Schools mentioned

Jenkins said the schools brought up for potential closure have fewer than 200 students. She named Corryton, Gap Creek, Maynard and South Knoxville elementary schools.

She said smaller schools are selected in these discussions because they have the largest operating costs. She said any small school would be an option.

Jenkins said it can cost about $20,000 per student at some smaller schools, compared with $8,000 to $9,000 per student at larger schools.

She said Gap Creek in South Knoxville is probably the school with the highest operating cost.

“There’s just one teacher per grade level, one principal, one janitor, basically. You can’t really trim it. They don’t even have a full-time PE teacher. They float,” Jenkins said.

Jenkins said Gap Creek and New Hopewell are among the small schools that have come up in past discussions. She said closures have never happened.

“It doesn’t mean it would be your school with 200 students. It could be a different one, or it could be none. We literally don’t know,” Jenkins said.

She said the board did not discuss how many schools might close.

Superintendent’s statement

Superintendent Jon Rysewyk provided the following statement:

“At the Board of Education’s annual workshop last week, staff previewed several strategies to create capacity in the KCS budget. Over the last three fiscal years, increases in fixed expenses (water, utilities, etc.) and investments in staff have exceeded growth in new revenue. That trend requires us to think differently about how we use our resources to sustain the progress we’re making in student outcomes.

“The strategies previewed last week included: district office reductions; reevaluating capital improvement plans; exploring rezoning and consolidation options; adjusting spending; reviewing school staffing allocations and contract lengths; and considering changes to school start and end times. These were not formal proposals, but opportunities to explore potential mechanisms to reduce budget strain, maximize dollars closest to our schools, and sustain the strategies that have generated year-over-year improvements in student outcomes.

“One action we do intend to take is a $4 million reduction in district office spending through position reductions. Decisions like these are never easy, but reducing the district office footprint will continue to align our resources with declining student enrollment and preserve capacity closest to our schools. Any impacted staff will be notified before the Nov. 9 retirement incentive deadline so that those who qualify have an opportunity to take advantage of that benefit.”

Other budget figures

Jenkins said the district also discussed saving $1 million to $2.6 million through changes to bus routes.

She said expenses such as utilities and teacher pay continue to increase. She said the district operates 91 schools.

She said enrollment has declined. She said the district had 58,442 students in 2025 and 57,860 in 2026.

Jenkins said the state and county are not providing the full amount the district should be entitled to, which she said created a deficit.

Message to parents

“I definitely would just breathe. There has not been any discussions of your school is closing. All we are saying is the budget is tight and we do have to figure something out,” Jenkins said.

Jenkins said school closure is not going to be option number one. She said the board has discussed being transparent about whatever it does.

Next steps

The school board’s next meeting is Nov. 2. Jenkins said there is no timeline for when decisions will be made.

“These are just beginning discussions,” Jenkins said.