CLEVELAND, Ohio — Cleveland Schools expects to close 23 buildings and operate 29 fewer schools under a sweeping restructuring plan that would amount to the district’s largest overhaul in decades.

Cleveland Metropolitan School District CEO Warren Morgan said the changes are necessary to confront steep drops in enrollment, rising operating costs and a looming $150 million deficit. Changes would take effect before the 2026-2027 school year.

The plan, introduced to the school board Wednesday night, would save CMSD at least $30 million annually if approved. Those savings would mostly come from the district cutting administrative staff, including principals and assistant principals, on account of reducing the number of schools.

Morgan told cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer that the number of teachers should stay roughly the same as CMSD’s footprint shrinks, but some layoffs and new hires may occur, as the schools need different personnel.

Consolidation won’t just save money, Morgan said, but will also allow CMSD to offer a better education to more students.

He said during Wednesday’s board meeting that Cleveland’s schools have “pockets of excellence.” Some schools have great academics and others have great sports programs. But to offer all students an excellent education and extracurriculars, action is needed.

The plan significantly shrinks CMSD’s physical footprint. The district will go from 61 PreK–8 schools to 45, and from 27 high schools to 14. Amid the consolidation, 18 CMSD-owned buildings will be closed, and five leased spaces currently used as schools will also be phased out.

In some cases, students won’t change school buildings at all. Several Cleveland high schools like John Hay and John Marshall contain three different “schools” on one campus, each with its own administration.

In those cases, the campus will become one high school. Morgan said specialized programs currently offered at the schools will continue even after the mergers.

Some schools will not merge but will move to a better-maintained building that has capacity.

Morgan emphasized that nearly all of the changes are mergers, not straight closures. This means students won’t be dispersed, and their entire school community can move together into a new building. Cleveland schools also allow school choice, which gives students an opportunity to move freely if parents desire.

District officials say 95% of affected students will move into schools in stronger building conditions, and all students will gain expanded academic and extracurricular opportunities.

Morgan acknowledged the deep disruption that school closings will cause, but he said the district cannot maintain a system built for twice as many students as it now serves.

Since 2000, CMSD’s enrollment has dropped by more than 50%, from 70,000 students in 2000 to 34,000 today. Morgan attributed that downward trend to the drop in the region’s birthrate, not losing students to charters or private schools.

But CMSD largely uses the same footprint as it did 25 years ago.

Because of low enrollment, there are fewer than 5,000 students currently enrolled in schools that will either be merged or moved amid the consolidation plan.

Morgan said additional central-office and administrative cuts will still be needed to stabilize CMSD’s long-term finances.

The board is expected to vote on CMSD’s consolidation plan Dec. 9. Morgan said he does not expect any changes to the plan between now and December, saying district officials have done public engagement for over a year.

Many students and parents want the decision made soon, Morgan said, so they can start preparing.

Here are CMSD’s recommended school mergers and closures.

K-8 schools merging

Students from the “transitioning school” will move into the building of the “welcoming school.”

• Hannah Gibbons will merge into Memorial (students move to the Memorial building)

• Euclid Park will merge into East Clark (East Clark building)

• Stephanie Tubbs Jones will merge with Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR building, renamed Stephanie Tubbs Jones)

• Mary M. Bethune will merge into Daniel E. Morgan (Daniel E. Morgan building)

• Mary B. Martin will merge into Wade Park (Wade Park building)

• Alfred A. Benesch will merge into George Washington Carver (Carver building)

• Bolton will merge into Harvey Rice (Harvey Rice building)

• Charles Dickens will merge into Andrew J. Rickoff (Rickoff building)

• Adlai Stevenson will merge into Whitney M. Young Leadership (Whitney Young building)

• Miles will merge into Robert H. Jamison (Jamison building)

• Mound will merge into Albert Bushnell Hart (Hart building)

• Mary Church Terrell will merge into Wilbur Wright (Wilbur Wright building, renamed Wilbur Wright School of the Arts)

• Waverly and Louisa May Alcott will merge into Joseph M. Gallagher (Gallagher building)

• Charles A. Mooney will merge into Denison (Denison building)

• Valley View Boys’ Leadership Academy will merge with Kenneth Clement Boys’ Leadership Academy ** (Mary M. Bethune building)

K–8 specialty schools moving to improved buildings

These schools keep their programs but move into buildings that are in better condition.

• Stonebrook–White Montessori will move into the Stephanie Tubbs Jones building (renamed Michael R. White Montessori)

• Kenneth Clement Boys’ Leadership, merged with Valley View, will move into the Mary M. Bethune building (renamed Kenneth W. Clement Boys’ Leadership Academy)

• Dike School of the Arts will move into the Mound building (renamed Dike School of the Arts)

• Tremont Montessori will move into the Waverly building (renamed Waverly Montessori)

High schools merging

Students from the “transitioning school” move into a “welcoming school” building.

• Collinwood High School will merge with Glenville High School (Glenville building)

• Campus International High School will merge with John Hay High School (John Hay building)

• MC2STEM High School will merge with East Tech High School (East Tech building)

• New Tech West and Facing History New Tech High School will merge with James Ford Rhodes High School (Rhodes building)

High schools merging within their existing campuses

Merged into a single high school at the campus’s main building.

• John Hay Campus: the Cleveland School of Science & Medicine, Cleveland School of Architecture and Design and Cleveland Early College High School will all become John Hay High School

• Benjamin O. Davis High School: the Davis Aerospace and Maritime High School and Cleveland High School for Digital Arts will merge

• John Marshall Campus: the John Marshall School of Civic & Business Leadership, John Marshall School of Engineering and John Marshall School of Information Technology will become John Marshall High School

• Lincoln-West Campus: the Lincoln-West School of Global Studies and Lincoln-West School of Science and Health will become Lincoln-West High School

• James Ford Rhodes Campus: the James Ford Rhodes College and Career Academy and James Ford Rhodes School of Environmental Studies will become James Ford Rhodes High School

• Garrett Morgan Campus: the Garrett Morgan School of Engineering & Innovation and Garrett Morgan School of Leadership & Innovation will become Garrett Morgan High School