Birmingham, AL – The Birmingham Board of Education voted Tuesday night to close 16 schools over the next three years.
Board member Virginia Volker was the lone dissenting voice in the 8-1 vote.
The state Department of Education had given the board a March 1st deadline to close schools and reduce its annual operating costs of 250 million dollars to avoid state takeover.
Acting superintendent Barbara Allen presented a reworked version of a plan by suspended superintendent Stan Mims at a public meeting Thursday.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)