Good Afternoon South Boston Civic Leaders and Community Members,

Hope this finds you well. I am reaching out to share details regarding the recommendation to close Excel High School in South Boston. The district’s goal is to continue to provide high quality learning environments for every child, and high quality teaching environments for every educator.

Yesterday, BPS shared recommendations for select closures and mergers impacting a total of 6 schools including Excel, identified through a rigorous, transparent, data-driven, process:

  • This includes 2 high school closures, 1 elementary school closure, 1 merger of two elementary schools, and the conversion of 1 high school from a degree-granting school into a program.

  • These recommendations will be presented to the Boston School Committee on January 22, 2025. We expect the School Committee to vote on these proposals in March/April 2025.

Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper recently shared that the current Excel High School building is in need of capital investments, which the district plans to make after the 2025-2026 school year with the vision of bringing an anchor high school back to the neighborhood.

What does this mean for our neighborhood and students? The vision is to have a fully enrolled high school in the next few years that will be sought out by students and families and delivers the High Quality Student Experience, including early college and career pathways, robust academic programming and a range of extracurriculars–all important pieces in building a strong school community. Excel’s current building has excellent potential and a beautiful WWI memorial in the lobby, which will be preserved alongside the modernization work throughout the learning spaces allowing us to develop programming that best serves our students.

How will this closure impact current Excel High School students in South Boston?

  • Current 12th graders who are eligible to graduate will graduate in 2025, and current 11th graders will transition to 12th grade and then will be eligible to graduate next year. BPS will cap new enrollment at 9th grade starting in Fall 2025.

  • Though the building is in poor condition, it shows great potential to support a high-quality student experience. The building is currently being scoped for a decarbonization project through Renew Boston Trust. We are committed to maintaining an anchor high school in South Boston.

The Long-Term Facilities Plan is available for community members to review.   If you have any additional questions, please reach out to Boston Public Schools for further information at BPS Helpline at 617-635-8873 or capitalplanning@bostonpublicschools.org.

 

All the best,

Lydia Hamilton Polaski

Neighborhood Liaison South Boston 

Mayor Michelle Wu

Office of Neighborhood Services