HAMLET — The potential of closing one of Richmond County’s schools as a cost-saving measure has parents concerned.
During a March 24 work session, the Richmond County Board of Education opted to move forward with a comprehensive school closure study related to shuttering Ellerbe Middle School after the upcoming school year.
Superintendent Dr. Joe Ferrell said the district has lost approximately 1,100 students over the past decade and, other than the Ninth Grade Academy, is still operating the same number of schools.
The district has also reportedly lost $3 million from the fund balance over the past two years, as costs continue to rise.
After reviewing options from a facilities study regarding the elementary schools, Ferrell moved on to the four options offered related to making the middle schools more efficient:
According to a graphic, EMS is the smallest of the county’s four middle schools and, in the last school year, was at about two-thirds capacity.
Ferrell said the low enrollments at the two smallest middle schools, Ellerbe and Cordova, result in limited course selections, later quoting students and parents making the same complaints.
He added that smaller enrollment numbers can lead to a difficulty in fielding sports teams, noting that there were some combination teams this school year.
“What those people are really saying is, ‘We want the same things at our school … that students have at larger middle schools,’” Ferrell said. “And certainly, we think that they deserve that.”
The problem, according to the superintendent, is “how to pay for that.”
According to Ferrell, the district spends approximately $1,700 more per pupil at EMS than at the other middle schools — roughly $330,000 per year.
Closing Ellerbe Middle would save the district an estimated $1,675,546 — $1.48 million in staffing and $192,000 in facilities costs — per year.
Other potential savings, according to Ferrell, would include costs associated with capital investments (roof, windows, doors, HVAC) and site-based contracts.
Ferrell also outlined the potential costs associated with a closure, including the one-time costs of student relocation and redistricting, closure preparation and moving, as well as an estimated $40,000 per year in transportation.
The next step, Ferrell said, would be to conduct a comprehensive school closure study to include:
Ferrell clarified that students and parents haven’t asked for consolidation.
“They want the things …but … we can’t bring the things to them and continue to be operating financially efficiently,” Ferrell said. “A building is important … but our students need more than a place — they deserve pathways and equitable resources.”
Ferrell added that he knows potentially closing the school “is an emotional issue,” but added that it’s also a business issue.
Before a closure could take place, a public hearing would need to be held.
School Board Member Ron Tillman said his preferred option would be to build a combined elementary and middle school for the northern part of the county.
While Ferrell partially agreed, he said the athletics, programs and staffing issues would remain for the middle school.
“I know what those children don’t get being a small school,” said Chairman Cory Satterfield, a former EMS principal. “Unless we’re going to find money somewhere else … some hard decisions will have to be made.”
Tillman and Scotty Baldwin both expressed concerns about bussing of students — especially those in the northwestern corner of the county — to other schools, with Baldwin noting that its 23 miles and about a half-hour with no stops from the Mangum Community Center to Rockingham Middle.
“The financial side, I completely understand,” Baldwin said. “I just have … a very hard time charging a parent an hour a day — some parents don’t have it to give.”
Tillman also brought up how much earlier students who ride the bus would have to wake up.
The vote to conduct the study was 4-2, with Tillman, Satterfield, Jerry Ethridge and Bess Shuler approving, and Baldwin and Bobbie Sue Ormsby opposing.
The video of the meeting, from the district’s YouTube channel, was posted to social media and had many parents in the northern end of the county upset.
Brett Webb started a petition on Change.org to save the school.
“Ellerbe is a small rural town, but it is full of history, pride, and people who care deeply about their community. Ellerbe Middle School — once Ellerbe High School — has been at the center of that community for generations,” Webb says in the introduction.
Regarding the assertion that consolidation would create more opportunities, Webb said that “... for many families, that simply isn’t the reality.”
“Closing Ellerbe Middle would mean some students facing 30-minute drives each way to attend school,” Webb said, echoing concerns from Tillman and Baldwin. For working parents, that’s not just an inconvenience — it’s a daily burden that many cannot manage.”
Webb added that consolidation would take away access to athletics and after-school activities, saying that without transportation, “many students will lose the chance to participate, grow, and stay connected.”
“This school is more than a place of learning,” Webb continued. “It is an employer. It is a gathering place. It is an anchor in a town that already has too few resources for families.
“When you remove a school from a small community like Ellerbe, you don’t just move students — you weaken the entire town.
“Our children deserve opportunity, but not at the cost of access, community, and belonging,” Webb concluded. “We are asking the school board to reconsider and keep Ellerbe Middle School open — for our students, our families, and the future of our town.”
As of April 10, the petition had more than 1,200 signers — most within the first 36 hours.
The next school board meeting is scheduled for 5 p.m., Tuesday, April 14.
NOTE: This story has been updated to correct a typo in the vote split. 5:53 p.m. 4-10-26.
NOTE: This story has been updated to correct Shuler's name and to include Satterfield's vote. 10:23 p.m. 4-10-26.
