BRADENTON, Fla. — Parents of Gene Witt Elementary School students are growing anxious as school officials try to figure out what to do with the aging campus.

  • District officials must decide whether to rebuild or renovate school
  • Parents worried students could be bused miles away if they rebuild
  • School board is seeking approval from the state 

“My main concern is the lack of information,” said Rachel Davenport, the mother of two students. “All of a sudden they’re talking about tearing down the school and building a new school. Where are the kids going to go? Are they going to be split up?”

On October 10, parents received an automated email from school leadership that stated the Manatee County School Board wanted to explore the option of rebuilding Gene Witt Elementary, before moving forward with the $20.4 million renovation project.

The email read, in part:

“The board is going to contact the state to request that we would be allowed to tear down the school and rebuild a new school rather than remodel. If approved, a plan would move forward with moving the students and staff off our campus to another location. We would be there for 12- 15 months while they tear down and rebuild Witt Elementary.”

District officials say there are concerns with the current campus due to its multi-building layout. If they were to rebuild, the school could reduce inefficacies and any security concerns by having it contained to just one building.

With the school being just a few decades old, the district must ask the state for permission before knocking it down and rebuilding from scratch.

“The first step is to decide if you can tear down that school,” said Doug Wagner, Deputy Superintendent of Operations for the school district.

But Davenport says she wants her children on the Gene Witt campus. She bought her home just a few blocks away from the school so that her young children wouldn’t have to take the bus.

“I don’t really want to put my little kindergartener on a bus for God knows how long,” she said.

If the state agrees that the school can be rebuilt, Wagner says there are numerous options on what can be done with students during the construction period. The district could use portable classrooms or bus students to an available building during construction.

A third option is to build the new school on an open parcel of land and keep students in the current building during construction.

But he stated that as of Friday, these are all "ifs." Right now, they are waiting to hear back from the state before than can proceed with either rebuilding or renovation.

“All options are on the table right now,” he said.

If the district choses to move forward with renovations as originally planned, they could start as soon as next semester.