Students and staff at Blackshear Elementary will move to the Oak Springs campus permanently in January of 2028.
AUSTIN, Texas — The oldest operating elementary school in Austin will be closing for good.
According to KVUE’s media partners at the Austin-American Statesman, Austin ISD Superintendent Matias Segura sent a letter to parents on Monday announcing students and staff at Blackshear Elementary will move to the Oak Springs campus permanently in January of 2028.
In November, the district school consolidation plan included closing either Oak Springs or Blackshear before the 2026-2027 school year and relocating students from the closing campus to the other.
Now, Oak Springs is set to get a completely new $47.6 million campus that the superintendent said can support students from both campuses.
Before the updated Oak Springs campus on Webberville Road is completed, students from both campuses will attend Blackshear on East 11st Street, from this fall through December 2027.
The move is part of Austin ISD’s consolidation plan that’s designed to address state-mandated turnaround requirements and help save the district $21.8 million to offset a $50 million deficit.
Construction has already begun on the new Oak Springs campus as part of a $2.4 billion voter-approved bond. Work has stalled on the site due to the consolidation plan.
“We are committed to honoring the original vision and hard work of the Oak Springs community while also building the high-quality fine arts spaces needed to grow the wonderful program nurtured by Blackshear,” Segura said in the letter.
District officials had considered redirecting the bond money to modernize Blackshear, but the almost $50 million allocated for Oak Springs would not have covered the costs.
Segura said the district will seek a historic designation for Blackshear, which opened in 1891, and incorporate the campus’ history into the design of the new building.