Parents consider ditching public school

AUSTIN (KXAN) - As organized parent groups continue a very public fight to keep their children's Austin schools open, there is an underground discussion brewing.

"A lot don't want to talk about it, but everyone is thinking about it," said Robin, who has a fourth grade son at Barton Hills Elementary.

She and others are checking into other options for their children beyond traditional public education: private schools, charter schools and homeschooling.

Parkside Community School , a small private school in Central Austin, said it has received at least half a dozen calls from parents at nearby Barton Hills and Zilker Elementary -- both on the Austin school district's potential closure list.

"I expected it was going to be beneficial for us, but terrible for the people in the neighborhoods," said Joe Bruno, founder of Parkside Community School. "It's really sad."

Like Austin ISD, affected parents are putting all options on the table. Robin has decided to have her son take an admissions test at a private school Saturday. It is a move she never thought she'd make.

"I think for parents like me who want to believe public education can work and who have had it work super, super well, it's really devastating," said Robin. "And it really does make you rethink anything."

For those considering the private school route, there is the extra cost which varies with each school. For a $400,000 home around Barton Hills Elementary, homeowners pay about $400 per month in school district taxes. A month's worth of tuition at Parkside runs around $800 a month per student, and there is no guarantee a child can get in.

"We don't have room for that many more students," said Bruno. The Montessori school is almost maxed out now with an enrollment of 130 students from pre-K to sixth grade with dozens more students on the waiting list.