RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Some Richmond leaders and parents are outraged over the school board’s decision against rezoning River City Middle School.
The building is packed full of students and some hoped rezoning would help ease the strain.
Richmond councilwoman Ellen Robertson calls the decision an embarrassment and a shame. She said yesterday was a sad day in a lot of ways.
“I’m not pointing fingers, I’m just calling it like it is, okay,” she said.
Leaders like Robertson said the school is beyond 100% capacity, holding around 1,500 people when it’s made to only hold 1,300.
The principal said staff are sharing rooms and are calling out because of stress.
The rezoning committee put a plan together to send some students to Binford Middle, but on Monday, the board voted no.
The four members who voted yes said those who voted no prioritized school choice over the safety of students on the Southside.
School board member Nicole Jones was one of several Richmond city leaders present yesterday to speak out against the board’s final vote.
“This side of the river is tired and we deserve the same economic justice, educational justice, health, justice, food, justice, and everything else that everybody else in this city deserves,” she said.
Richmond mom Becca DuVal spoke up at the event yesterday.
“I’m a parent, I’m a mom. I just, it is unreasonable that this status quo is allowed to continue. It is criminal that it is allowed to continue,” DuVal said.
The school board chair sent 8News a statement saying the board would not intentionally place a child in harm’s way.
The board will review the rezoning recommendation at the next board meeting on Monday.
