EPISD gives update on changes at Paul C. Moreno Elementary School

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- The El Paso Independent School District along with some parents of Paul C. Moreno Elementary held a community meeting Monday to discuss the possibility of some students to move to another school.

EPISD's goal is to expand its Montessori program to teach students learning to advocate, learn at their own pace, and have active learning.

Montessori arrived at EPISD this past year at Moreno Elementary, which is the pilot site.

Moreno Elementary currently has four classrooms that teach this program with multi-age classrooms that have 3, 4, 5, and 6-year-olds.

"That's one of the things I think that's very important to clarify for all the families. We're not closing this school, what we're merely doing is adding a program to the campus that will expand over time," said EPISD's Chief Schools Officer Carla Gonzales.

Gonzales said they will be offering all students an opportunity to apply for the Montessori program, but not closing Moreno.

ABC-7 spoke with some parents before the community meeting who said they are concerned because they don't want to move their kids to other schools.

Even though they know Montessori could be a good program for their kids, they wonder why EPISD chose this school and not another one.

Students could either apply for the Montessori program to stay at Moreno Elementary or enroll at Crockett Elementary School, which is in Central El Paso as well.

"Well, we are seeing that we may even have to move to another district because if EPISD plans to do this very often based on what we have been informed, then it is not good for us and it is not good for the children either," said Elizabeth Ramirez a concerned parent.

Other parents also claim EPISD never told them their plans in advance and that's what worries them the most.