October 1, 2026 4;00 a.m.
Roseburg Schools Superintendent Jared Cordon is recommending that Fir Grove Elementary School be closed at the end of the current school year.
A document titled “Aligning to Thrive” was posted on the district website on Wednesday night. In it, Cordon said after a decade of declining enrollment, the district is facing a growing mismatch between the number of students it serves and the elementary school system that was built to serve them. Cordon said at the same time, aging facilities require increasing investment, operating costs continue to rise, and lower enrollment at some schools is making it more difficult to organize classrooms and staffing in ways that best support students.
The document said if the proposal is approved by the school board, Fir Grove students would remain at their current school for the rest of this school year and then transition to nearby schools starting in the 2027/28 school year. Proposed receiving schools include Eastwood, Hucrest and Fullerton elementary schools.
Cordon said, “This recommendation is not a judgment about Fir Grove, its students, staff or families,” Cordon said, “Fir Grove is a strong school community that has served generations of Roseburg students. I recognize how difficult it is to consider closing a school that means so much to so many people. My responsibility is also to look at our elementary system as a whole and recommend what I believe will best position Roseburg Schools to serve students now and in the future.”
Roseburg Schools enrolled 5,221 students in September of this year, nearly 11 percent fewer than a decade ago. The district currently operates eight elementary schools with a combined functional capacity of 3,295 students. Those schools served approximately 2,434 students in the last school year, meaning the elementary system was operating at 74 percent of its combined functional capacity. The district said Fir Grove is currently operating at 54 percent capacity.
The document said the superintendent estimates the consolidation could reduce annual general fund expenditures by approximately $1.3 million.
News Radio 93-9 FM and 1240 KQEN is seeking more information about the Aligning to Thrive proposal and plans a follow up story.