2 elementary schools voted to close in Grosse Pointe

GROSSE POINTE, Mich. (FOX 2) - The Board of Education for the Grosse Pointe Public School System, after months of discussion and debate, voted on reconfiguration Monday night. 

The vote decided that two elementary schools will close in June of 2020, Robert Trombly Elementary and Charles A. Poupard Elementary schools. 

The board has been discussing this possibility since January, and spent several more hours Monday night before the vote. Among things brought up were accusations of racism, when determining which schools would be shuttered.

"We need to pay attention to the internalized cultural beliefs, shaken by history, dominant culture, repetitive, polarized messages, racialized isolation ... that produces an "us vs. them" mindset, and produces unconscious thoughts and behavior," said Dr. Agustin Arbulu with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights.

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This was a tough decision for the district, which is losing about 100 students a year, totaling about $1 million in funding. 

The school board also voted to reconfigure its schools. What that means is K-4 will now be consolidated into the remaining schools, and fifth graders will be moved into the middle schools.