Durham School of the Arts Decision Expected Aug. 8

The Durham Public Schools Board of Education won’t make an official decision on the future of Durham School of the Arts until a work session next Thursday.

Today, board members heard presentations from the district’s operation services staff about the comparative costs of renovating the existing downtown campus or moving forward with plans to build a new DSA more than two miles away off Stadium Drive.

Building new, they argued, would allow improvements to facilities, traffic management, and accessibility. They explained that construction of the new campus would proceed while students kept attending at the existing DSA facilities. And, after moving students to the new campus, the district would explore using the old site for administrative or learning purposes.

Jane Wheeler, a retired DPS teacher who spoke during the public hearing, countered that the reports from staff were “fluff and no stuff.” She said that the buildings would still need renovations to be used for other purposes and, therefore, “renovations should serve School of the Arts.”

Dance teacher Boleyn Willis-Zeger told the board she worried how relocating the school might affect her ballet studio and nearby restaurants that benefit from business generated by proximity to DSA.

Mary Kopac asked for a show of hands from board members who had already decided to move the campus north, to no avail. However, the district has moved forward with an investment in preparation work at the proposed new site. It would seem unlikely, but not impossible, that DPS would reverse course.

During his public comment, Brian Callaway criticized the district for failing to adequately notify the public – especially the DSA community – about Thursday’s hearing.

After public comment and before the board headed into closed session, Board Member Natalie Beyer urged the administration to amplify its outreach efforts ahead of the Aug. 8 meeting “to get information out deeper into the community.”