Mesa’s closure has been proposed. The Board has not yet voted.
BVSD Board vote: September 22
BVSD has proposed closing Mesa Elementary and combining the Mesa and Bear Creek communities. The Board of Education is scheduled to vote on the proposal September 22. This site is a parent-run resource with information about the proposal, upcoming meetings, and ways to participate.
What is being proposed?
BVSD has proposed closing Mesa Elementary and combining the Mesa and Bear Creek school communities at Bear Creek. The Board of Education has not yet approved the proposal and is scheduled to vote on September 22.
This proposal raises serious concerns about class sizes, individual attention, student support, and the day-to-day learning environment at Bear Creek. BVSD has said that AIM and RISE programs would also be housed there, which raises questions about whether the available spaces will meet the sensory, behavioral, and instructional needs of those students.
What BVSD Has Not Yet Shown
BVSD says the combined student population will fit within the Bear Creek building and that consolidation will support staffing, programs, and opportunities. However, some basic questions about what the combined school would actually look like in practice have not yet been answered publicly.
What will class sizes be at each grade level? How many students will each classroom teacher be responsible for? Where will AIM and RISE operate, and what will those learning spaces look like? How will Bear Creek’s open-concept design function with a substantially larger student population?
A building having enough capacity does not, by itself, show that the educational environment will be better for students.
Questions Families Deserve Answers To
Class Sizes
AIM & RISE
What will class sizes actually be at each grade level after Mesa and Bear Creek are combined?
Where will these programs be housed at Bear Creek, and will those spaces meet the sensory, behavioral, and instructional needs of the students they serve?
Open Classroom Design
How will Bear Creek’s open-concept layout function with a substantially larger overall student population?
Day-to-Day School Life
How will lunch, recess, arrival, dismissal, assemblies, performances, specials, and shared spaces work with the combined school population?
Take Action
The Vote Matters
The proposal has been announced, but the Board has not yet approved it.
School closure recommendations have been changed or rejected in other districts after board members raised concerns about the process, the evidence supporting closures, and the effects on students and communities.
In Denver, the school board rejected a proposed closure plan in 2022. In Seattle, a proposed elementary school closure plan was withdrawn in 2024 after substantial community opposition and questions about the district’s case for closing schools.
Those cases do not predict what BVSD will decide. They do show that a proposal is not the same thing as a final decision.
September 8
Board Meeting + Public Comment
5:00 p.m. Attend the meeting or register to speak.
September 22
Board Vote + Public Comment
5:00 p.m. The Board is scheduled to take action on the proposal.
Important Dates
Contact the Board
Email the seven Board members with your questions and concerns before the vote.