School Consolidation and Siting Analysis

Whether your district is evaluating school consolidation, boundary adjustments, capacity needs, or new school sites, our team of planners and GIS analysts can help you make data-driven decisions that create community buy-in and support long-term district needs.

As declining birth rates, changing enrollment patterns, and increased school choice put new pressure on school systems, districts are being asked to do more with limited resources. Being a good steward of public funds means aligning enrollment, facilities, and programming in a way that supports students, operates efficiently, and reflects long-term district goals. That starts with understanding enrollment trends and facility needs before evaluating options such as consolidation, expansion, or new school siting.

Enrollment Forecasting and Trend Analysis

Effective school consolidation within facility planning starts with a clear understanding of enrollment trends.

FLO Analytics analyzes historical enrollment patterns, demographic change, school choice patterns, and residential development to understand how a district’s enrollment is likely to change over time. Our team uses reliable data, proven methodologies, and local context to create forecasts tailored to each district’s needs. This work gives district leaders a strong foundation for long-range planning and helps them evaluate whether changes are temporary or long-term.

Our enrollment forecasting work can help districts:

• Identify past and current enrollment trends
• Understand demographic and geographic enrollment patterns
• Evaluate school choice and transfer impacts
• Project future enrollment by school, grade level, or geography
• Inform boundary changes, grade reconfiguration, school consolidation, expansion, or new school planning

These insights provide a strong foundation for evaluating consolidation, expansion, boundary changes, and new school planning.

School Capacity and Utilization Analysis

Once enrollment trends are understood, districts need to evaluate how existing facilities are used today and how future use may change based on enrollment, funding, and program needs.

FLO Analytics works with school districts to determine accurate school capacities based on a careful analysis of each room within a school building. We help district and school leaders establish utilization goals that reflect long-term planning priorities and account for factors such as class size requirements, special programming, and facility type.

Our school capacity and utilization analysis can help districts:

• Assess current and projected utilization for each school
• Identify underused or constrained capacity
• Evaluate whether school boundaries should be adjusted
• Determine whether expansion, consolidation, or additional schools may be needed
• Create a clear capacity methodology and maintainable data files for future updates

By aligning enrollment with facility capacity, districts can operate more efficiently, support strong educational programs, and make better long-term decisions about school facilities.

School Consolidation and Closures

School consolidation is one of the most complex and sensitive long-term planning decisions a district can face.

FLO Analytics partners with districts to develop consolidation planning processes that are tailored to the specific needs of students, parents, the community, and district financial stability. We believe that centering equity and engaging the community with accessible information are both vital in producing effective solutions that are student-focused, fiscally sound, and community-supported.

When districts begin working through these processes, they often form a committee to review data and make recommendations to their boards of education. FLO has expertise forming and facilitating these committees and ensuring that committee members have a clear understanding of the district’s student enrollment data, including:

• Past trends
• Current enrollment, including demographics and choice patterns
• Future enrollment projections
• Current and projected utilization for each school

We work with district leaders and committee members to set clear objectives for the consolidation process and the criteria that will guide decision-making. We also work with districts to develop community engagement plans that foster trust in the final decision.

School Expansion

Sometimes the best option for districts experiencing enrollment change is to increase capacity at existing schools rather than consolidate.

We use enrollment projections showing where students currently live and are projected to live in the next ten years, along with school capacity analysis and information about special programs, to help district leaders decide whether school expansion is the most effective option.

New School Siting Analysis

Our service helps school districts identify ideal locations for new schools using GIS data and tools.

We analyze key factors such as:

• Student enrollment forecasts
• Proximity to other schools
• Transportation access
• Land use
• Parcel size and configuration
• Environmental constraints

This data-driven approach streamlines site selection, balancing future student needs, community accessibility, environmental considerations, and long-term district fiscal viability.