After Thursday’s school board vote, a group of parents in San Jose Unified is determined to keep their schools from closing, raising safety and equity concerns in a formal complaint to the district. Friday, parents submitted additional paperwork to try to pause the process from moving forward. “This morning we sent two additional documents to the district, requesting to stay this process until they address the UCP,” David Friedlander, a parent of two at Hammer Elementary, said. The district could take up to 60 days to respond to the complaint. In the meantime, parents were weighing on what options they have. Chrystal Kirk is part of many families from Gartner Elementary considering applying for an inter district transfer because Horace Mann, the elementary school her daughters would go to next year, isn’t logistically an option for them. “Just getting into downtown is nightmare I don’t want to go through,” Kirk said. For her child, the move would also mean leaving her closest friends behind. “They know each other so well, they take care of each other,” Kirk said. Hammer Montessori isn’t closing, but the over 300 families there will relocate about a mile and a half away, moving into the soon-to-be vacated Gartner Elementary. “We walk to school, so this will have a big impact. I’m a single mom, I’ll probably have to buy a car now, with gas prices being what they are for families all across the district, this is going to be a big impact,” Alegra Howard said. In a message to families sent to NBC Bay Area Friday, the district’s Superintendent Nancy Albarran reiterated why the closures are happening: to strengthen social and academic opportunities for students and provide more consistent support to schools. But parents said they still feel left in the dark. “This was the first step for the district, to close the schools, that’s why we’re concerned about the motivations, because it doesn’t align with what we understand about the district’s position financially,” Friedlander said. “I personally feel that this transition is happening way too quickly,” Karen Lopez said. Superintendent Albarran said in a statement to families that “while a decision has been made, our work is not over. In the months ahead, our focus will be on making this transition as thoughtful and smooth as possible.” The formal complaint was filed on Wednesday. The district has 60 days to respond. ...read more read less