DECATUR, GA — The Decatur City School Board has decided not to vote anytime soon on closing any K-2 schools.

Instead, the board opted for a plan that emphasizes community input, Board Vice President Hanz Utz said.

“I think we are all uniformly saying we’re not interested in option A. We are not going to be taking a vote in December about whether or not we close a school,” Utz said.

Last month, parents raised concerns after hearing about the potential closure of some schools.

Parent Ben Brewer previously said families were caught off guard and want more transparency from the board.

“More than anything, this process I think is not transparent,” Brewer said, adding that parents received little notice before the meeting.

Utz says that the board is “accepting the recommendation largely driven by the community to slow down, involve the community, and let that input guide the analysis before it comes back to us likely in a largely more time frame for us to come to a decision at that point.”

The plan also includes forming various committees to explore ways to address declining enrollment without immediately closing schools.

A public hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 13 aimed at seeking input on what can be done to deal with low enrollment at the schools.

Decatur’s K-2 schools include Clairemont, Glennwood, Oakhurst, Westchester, and Winnona Park elementary schools.