Minneapolis Public Schools ‘transformation plan’ includes closing schools
MPS details potentially closing schools
Families within the Minneapolis Public Schools are getting a first look at changes happening within the district, including closing several schools. FOX 9’s Soyoung Kim has the latest.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Minneapolis Public Schools officials have outlined a restructuring plan that could reshape education across the city, including closing several school buildings.
MPS closures
What we know:
The district is considering several possibilities as part of what it's calling a "transformation" plan, according to officials. Options on the table include school closures and consolidations.
Minneapolis Public Schools currently serves roughly 29,000 students — nearly 13,000 fewer than what its current infrastructure is designed to handle, according to the district. That gap is a key factor behind the push to restructure.
Dig deeper:
Minneapolis Public School Superintendent Lisa Sales Adams and district staff presented three options to the school board at the work session meeting on Tuesday, presenting structural changes that they say are necessary.
Across the three options, they all include what they call "unprogramming" more than a dozen buildings, school mergers and attendance boundary changes.
A full copy of the presented plan can be found here.
MPS weighs school closures as budget deficit nears $40M
Minneapolis Public Schools district is facing a nearly $40 million budget deficit driven by declining enrollment, funding cuts and rising costs. Three options to address the deficit will be presented at Tuesday's board meeting, with school closures expected to be among the proposals. FOX 9's Bill Keller reports.
The backstory:
In May, the district announced that it expected an extra $10.7 million in special education funding this school year, and $10.8 million next year, after it updated how it codes and categorizes expenses.
However, it's simply not enough.
In June 2025, the district announced it would need to trim hundreds of teacher and service positions as the district faced a grand total operating deficit of $95.1 million at the time, before a tech levy approved by resident voters provided the district with another $20 million toward balancing its budget.
At that point, the district was facing a budget shortfall of $75 million due to a mixture of declining enrollment and expiring federal pandemic funds.
What's next:
The board did not make any formal decisions at Tuesday's presentation.
District leaders say they'll provide an opportunity for public input over the next month and may adapt and adopt some of those updates based on that feedback.
They plan for it to go to a vote in November and if the changes are approved by the board, some could take effect as early as the next school year.
The Source: Information provided by the Minneapolis Public Schools board meeting on Sept. 15, 2026, and previous FOX 9 reporting.