In a day where school districts everywhere are searching for answers to declining enrollment, budget constraints, and shifting priorities, it can be very tempting to turn to a large-scale facilities plan as a quick fix. But not all solutions are progress, and not all closures proposed by the School District of Philadelphia Facilities Master Plan are justified. The proposed facilities plan risks dismantling something that is already working: the unique, student-centered model of education that happens every day at Lankenau Environmental Science Magnet High School in Northwest Philadelphia.

Lankenau, like every school on the closure list, should not be evaluated by a spreadsheet of factors from consultants who walked through the building, but by the environment provided and ability to meet students’ needs. Lankenau is a thriving CTE-centered educational community that specializes in agroecology (the study of ecological science, farming practices, and social movements to create sustainable, resilient food systems) while serving a diverse student population, including deaf, blind, and special needs students. These young people often struggle to find environments that truly meet all their needs. At Lankenau, they are not only supported — they are succeeding.

If the goal is to expand access to environmental education, the answer is not closure; it is investment. Strengthen what exists. Replicate what works. Build on success. Don’t erase it.

For years, Lankenau students have demonstrated when given the right environment they can shine. The smaller school setting — current enrollment is 228 (a result of the District’s ever-changing lottery system); capacity is 350 — provides individualized attention; Lankenau’s unique culture and location on 400 wooded acres of the Schuylkill Nature Reserve has made the school a space where all students feel seen, heard, and empowered. These are not abstract benefits; they are daily realities for families who watched their children grow academically, socially and emotionally.

Was there any consideration for these children who thrive in smaller school settings with the District’s proposed facilities plan?

Research constantly shows that smaller schools produce better outcomes for students, particularly those with additional needs. Students are more likely to build meaningful relationships with educators, feel a sense of belonging, and receive tailored instruction. For the population at Lankenau Environmental who are deaf, blind, and have special needs, these factors are not luxuries — they are essential.

Closing Lankenau Environmental would not simply relocate these students: It would dismantle a carefully built ecosystem of support. Larger schools, while offering certain efficiencies, often struggle to replicate the level of personalization that defines Lankenau’s success. In bigger settings, students with special needs can become lost in the system; a lack of individualized focus inhibits their progress.

What makes Lankenau Environmental even more powerful is the strength of its community connections, including partnerships with the Food Trust, the EPA, the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. The school currently maintains one community partner for every three students. This brings a remarkable level of engagement that gives students real-world learning, mentorship, and provides a large impact to every student’s daily experience. These partnerships are not easily transferable or scalable in larger more impersonal school environments. They are built on relationships, trust and consistency — things that take years to cultivate and a moment to lose.

If the School District of Philadelphia has concerns about building utilization or enrollment, the answer should not be immediate closure. As Philadelphia City Councilmember Nina Ahmad suggested at a meeting in City Hall, the District should give Lankenau five years to increase enrollment. The incoming freshman class (the class of 2030) slated to come to Lankenau is completely full. With this trend continuing, Lankenau will be at 100 percent building occupancy within a year or two. Growth does not happen overnight, especially for a specialized school serving such diverse learners. With time, support, and intentional outreach Lankenau Environemntal will expand its impact.

A school facilities plan should be about more than buildings; it should be about students.

It is also important to recognize that the District proposed to turn Lankenau into an “Environmental Hub,” for this part of the city, however, one already operates a few miles away at Fox Chase Farms — and it is currently underutilized.

In fact, Lankenau students themselves help sustain the Fox Chase site, with interns providing staff and support. Before proposing to create a new District-wide environmental center at Lankenau Environmental by closing a school that hosts over 1,500 middle school visitors for Land Lab Learning Lessons every year, the District should first fully invest and maximize the resources it already has. Expanding access should not come at the expense of a school that is already doing what the District says their plan is.

When a school is already changing lives for the better, closing them is not reform, it’s a step backward.

What makes this situation even more troubling is the contradiction within the District’s own vision. On one hand, the plan prioritizes expansion of environmental education opportunities. On the other, the plan proposes closing a school that already delivers those experiences every day. Lankenau’s land-based learning model, partnerships, and hands-on learning are not theoretical — they are operational. So why dismantle a proven model to chase an uncertain one? If the goal is to expand access to environmental education, the answer is not closure, it is investment. Strengthen what exists. Replicate what works. Build on success. Don’t erase it.

There is also a deeper question at stake: What messages about equity is the District’s Facilities Plan sending?

Lankenau serves a significant population of students who require more, not less support. These students have shown resilience, achievement, and growth in an environment designed for them. Closing the school risks undoing that process and sends a message that efficiency outweighs equity.

A school facilities plan should be about more than buildings; it should be about students. And in this case, the students are telling us something important through their success: Lankenau Environmental works.

Tomorrow, April 23, the School Board has an opportunity to make a different choice, one that prioritizes students over spreadsheets. I urge them to vote “No” on a plan that closes schools like Lankenau. Instead, commit to a path that includes time, investment, and belief in what’s already working. Because when a school is already changing lives for the better, closing them is not reform, it’s a step backward.

Jonathan Hoffmeier is a teacher at Lankenau Environmental Science Magnet High School and a sponsor of the Philadelphia Junior Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Related Sciences (MANRRS) Coalition, a network that links high school students to college-level programs in agriculture and natural sciences.

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