"Everything has been redone": after nearly 200,000 euros of work, an Alsatian school forced to close due to a lack of students

At a time when every public expenditure is being scrutinized, there is a worrying waste. In Bust, a small village in the west of the Bas-Rhin region with 500 inhabitants, the school was completely renovated, only to be closed a year later, at the start of the school year in September.

After two years of work, the school opened brand new for the start of the 2024 school year: new lighting, sanitary facilities and access for people with reduced mobility up to standard, installation of a ventilation system, replacement of the heating system... In total, 190,000 euros were invested in this project, which is very important for the life of the village, including 120,000 euros from the town hall, a substantial budget for this commune in bossue Alsace .

The lack of a return to school in 2025/2026 is a major disappointment for the mayor. "Apart from the ground, everything has been completely redone," a disillusioned Michel Beltran told BFMTV. For the village's souls, the pill is also difficult to swallow.

"We already don't have groceries... We have nothing," laments a mother. "School was the only thing left, and it was taken away from us."

However, the mayor can only bow to the rectorate's orders. Due to staff shortages, the Ministry of Education has decided to close two of the six classes in the Intercommunal Educational Grouping (RPI), the rural school network. Among them is the class that was to be held in Bust. Another class will close next year.

Michel Beltran decided to apply to the Strasbourg Administrative Court for a stay of proceedings, requesting a stay of the academy's decision, but the court ruled that the arbitration was not urgent and would therefore not be dealt with until next year. As a result, the school will not be accepting any children, at least for this year.

The mayor still hopes for compensation: he believes that the academic advisors should have warned him of their intention to avoid this lost investment.

"The rector said that it was justified by the demographic decline . I don't dispute that, I simply think that we could have thought about it and done things differently. The investment that we injected into the school was at no time taken into account by the academy."

When contacted by BFMTV, the Strasbourg education authority did not respond. In the meantime, the school's furniture and some of its equipment have been donated to other schools in the area. The school's two teachers, meanwhile, have been reassigned to neighboring establishments.