Two closed North East ISD campuses are getting a second act, and it does not involve PTA meetings. Bexar County is moving to convert the former Wilshire Elementary and Driscoll Middle School into law-enforcement training hubs, folding them into the region’s growing public-safety training network.
The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office plans to consolidate its training operations at the Wilshire campus near Fort Sam Houston, while the Alamo Area Regional Law Enforcement Academy is set to relocate to the Driscoll campus.
Commissioners Sign Off on Five-Year Wilshire Lease
On Jan. 20, county commissioners approved a five-year interlocal agreement granting the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office non-exclusive access to the Wilshire campus for training. The move also terminates the county’s existing lease with Alamo Colleges and triggers the required notice, according to discussion at the Bexar County commissioners court meeting. Court records show the items were bundled into a broader package of public-safety measures.
Inside the Wilshire Deal
The county will pay $6,500 a month, or $78,000 a year, for non-exclusive use of Wilshire, with access capped at nine hours a day between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Any extra time will be billed at $60 per hour, according to the San Antonio Report.
Under the agreement, NEISD will continue to provide utilities, custodial services and routine maintenance, and will retain control of the campus. In return, district safety staff are slated to receive up to 24 days per year of no-cost use of the sheriff’s firearms range.
The contract also bakes in a few community perks: a county-coordinated “Trunk or Treat” event and an education pipeline aimed at students interested in law-enforcement careers. In other words, not just drills and classrooms, but some public-facing programming too.
Sheriff Calls It a Step Toward a Dedicated Academy
“Ultimately what we need is a dedicated training academy,” Sheriff Javier Salazar told county leaders, describing Wilshire as a practical medium-term way to pull together training that is currently scattered across leased sites. Salazar said bringing classes under one roof would save money and staff time and would mean deputies and trainers spend less time crisscrossing the county, remarks captured at the Bexar County commissioners court meeting.
Commissioners framed the Wilshire plan as a “win-win” for public safety and the district, and floated the idea of a larger, collaborative regional training center somewhere down the line.
Driscoll to Become Home Base for Regional Academy
The Alamo Area Council of Governments has confirmed it will convert the Driscoll Middle School campus into the new home of the Alamo Area Regional Law Enforcement Academy. Construction work there will focus on classroom space and technology, with a target move-in date this August. The regional academy handles classroom and certification work for cadets across a 13-county region, while firearms, driving and other hands-on drills will continue at separate practice facilities, the San Antonio Report notes.
AACOG officials cast the relocation as a way to centralize instruction while leaning on partner sites for live-fire and driving work.
How These Campuses Became Available
NEISD voted to close Wilshire and Driscoll as part of a campus consolidation plan approved in February 2025, a move the district said was meant to tackle declining enrollment and a growing budget gap, according to North East ISD. District materials outline how shuttered campuses could be repurposed for administrative, programmatic or partner uses while keeping the buildings in public hands.
NEISD staff already occupy parts of the Wilshire campus for district safety operations, which district leaders say helped make a training lease an attractive reuse option.
Where These Sites Fit in the Region’s Training Grid
San Antonio already hosts major public-safety training facilities. San Antonio College’s First Responders Academy, for example, includes a dedicated law enforcement academy, driving pads and live-fire training infrastructure. County leaders say Wilshire and Driscoll will plug into that existing network rather than replace it.
The goal, officials say, is to consolidate scattered classes, make better use of public real estate and create clearer training pathways for smaller agencies in the region. They argue the approach keeps community-owned buildings active while responding to rising regional demand for officer certification and continuing education.
What Happens Next
County and district officials say the transition will begin once the required notice periods run their course, with training expected to shift into the newly leased sites later this year. Leaders also say they plan to keep coordinating community events and student career programming even as the campuses take on a new public-safety role.
