School 21, a small neighborhood elementary on Lee Avenue, is suddenly at the center of Yonkers' mounting money troubles. District leaders are asking the Board of Education to consider shutting the school as part of a plan to close a $101 million structural shortfall in the Yonkers Public Schools 2026-27 budget.
Trustees are set to take up the issue at their stated board meeting on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at 5:30 p.m. in the Angelo E. Paradiso Auditorium at Saunders Trades and Technical High School.
Proposal and budget context
Superintendent Aníbal Soler Jr.'s proposed budget flags School 21 for possible closure to help shrink the district's massive gap, according to Daily Voice. The administration has been publicly warning about a $101 million structural shortfall tied to what it calls an outdated Foundation Aid formula, along with rising special education and health care costs, as laid out in a district press release.
For months, officials have been urging Albany to step in with changes to state aid and funding formulas, arguing that without help they will be forced into program cuts and layoffs instead of just trimming around the edges.
What School 21 is
School 21 serves students from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade and sits on Lee Avenue in Yonkers, with its address and contact information listed on the district website. District leaders have described it as one of several elementary buildings that could be looked at as they juggle enrollment, facilities, and the budget crunch.
City and union reaction
Union leaders are already bracing for worst case scenarios. Deep reductions, they say, will not just tighten belts but could cost people their jobs and chip away at services students rely on.
"We could be facing layoffs," Yonkers Federation of Teachers President Samantha Rosado-Ciriello told News 12, warning that any school closure is likely to ripple through classrooms across the city.
At City Hall, Mayor Mike Spano and other local officials have been pressing state leaders for more aid and a fix to the funding formula in hopes of steering clear of closures, according to reporting in the Yonkers Times.
What happens at the meeting
The board's stated meeting is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 20, at Saunders Trades and Technical High School. Trustees are expected to review recommendations from the administration and could take a vote on any formal proposal that comes out of that discussion.
Agendas, public comment sign up details, and the district's live stream are posted on Yonkers Public Schools.
Why it matters
Closing an elementary school is not a simple line item. It would mean shifting students to other campuses, redrawing or adjusting bus routes, and negotiating where staff members land, all while trying to keep class sizes and programs intact. It could also complicate special education placements across the district, which often depend on specific services being clustered in particular buildings.
District and city officials insist the root of the problem is not local mismanagement, but state aid calculations and steadily rising mandated costs. That argument has been a recurring theme in district statements and local coverage as Yonkers inches closer to the 2026-27 budget deadline with a $101 million hole still staring it down.
