Concord Parents Declare Victory in Fight to Save Neighborhood School

CONCORD, NC – Parents in Concord are declaring victory in the fight to save their neighborhood school.

Dozens spoke out last week against the plan to move students from Beverly Hills STEM Elementary — to a new school in Kannapolis.

WCCB Charlotte has learned that at Monday night’s school board meeting, the Cabarrus County Superintendent will recommend the decision be delayed for one year.

Parents had been very upset at the idea of losing their neighborhood school.

“Sixty years of history doesn’t just go away overnight,” says parent Lee Shuman.

Shuman is excited his daughter will likely continue attending Beverly Hills STEM Elementary next year.

“We’re you know, 150 yards from the school, even on a cold day like today, we still enjoy walking to school and my daughter loves walking home,” Shuman says.

Families say they love their school because it’s small, older, and tucked away near downtown Concord.

Shuman and other parents organized a “Save Our School” campaign after school board members considered redistricting plans.

Most called for closing Beverly Hills and moving kids to the new, larger Royal Oaks Elementary in Kannapolis.

More than 50 parents and community members spoke out at a public hearing last week.

Monday, the board is now expected to withdraw the proposed redistricting plans.

“It’s a small victory for us. I think we feel that we’ve accomplished at least our initial goal, which was to buy ourselves more time,” Shuman says.

According to the district, this decision was based on a new state law that requires smaller class sizes for grades K-3.

Parents hope to convince board members of the benefits of having neighborhood schools versus the cost savings of building larger ones.

“It’s not always about the bottom dollar. There’s so many things that don’t fit, you know, so neatly in a spreadsheet,” Shuman says.