Although the Hillsborough County School Board has already voted to shut down Pizzo K-8 in the fall, teachers and students said they're not giving up.
A coalition made up of school staff and community leaders formed Project Pizzo to prevent the school, which sits on the University of South Florida Tampa campus, from closing its doors for good.
On Monday, the group met with USF leaders at the CSG Patel building.
Present at the meeting were USF's vice president chief of staff Robyn Blank; Jenifer Jasinski Schneider, USF College of Education dean; Jennifer Jacobs, a professor in elementary education; and USF legal counsel.
Why is Pizzo K-8 closing?
After the school's initial 30-year lease with USF ended in 2023, renegotiations – which took a year to complete – resulted in a near tenfold rent hike.
A USF spokesperson said the new rate is more in line with current values for the land, but they did consider their partnership with the Hillsborough County School District.
"The new rental rate does not reflect the true value of the 12-acre property compared to the significant increase in comparable land value throughout the Tampa Bay region," said a USF spokesperson.
The university has not indicated what it plans to do with the land.
Pizzo brothers join the effort
Anita Bloom, an art teacher at Pizzo, was part of the group that met with USF leaders on Monday.
"We want our students to be acknowledged for the value that they bring to this campus and that the campus brings to them," said Bloom.
Project Pizzo members said they're asking USF to renegotiate the terms of the lease to prevent their displacement.
Brothers Paul and Tony Pizzo also attended the meeting. Their father is Anthony Pizzo, the late historian the school is named after.
They said they reached out to Project Pizzo after hearing about the school's closure.
"I think if he were alive today, I honestly believe that he would say having a school named after him would be the thing that gave him the most pleasure," said Paul Pizzo.
The Anthony P. "Tony" Pizzo collection, an assortment of photos, postcards, maps and other historical artifacts, is one of the most referenced resources at USF for Tampa history.
Tony Pizzo, the younger of the two, said "there is a sincere connection" between his father, USF and the K-8 school.
"We hope that somehow or other, the school board and the University of South Florida can solve this problem, which appears to have become a financial one, not one about education," he said.
Hillsborough school board member Jessica Vaughn, whose district includes Pizzo K-8, was also at the meeting.
"I think the community is heartbroken and outraged about the closure," said Vaughn, "I visited the school, and I know what a special place it is ... and how it really feels like a home and a family for not just the students, but the employees."
Unlike other schools slated for closure, Pizzo K-8's enrollment is not falling. School district leaders said they had no choice but to close the school due to the rent increase.
Elementary school-aged students will be rezoned to five adjacent elementary schools. Middle schoolers will be reassigned to their zoned middle schools.
Teachers and parents at Pizzo have spoken about concerns of overcrowding at the receiving schools.
Since its inception, Pizzo has acted as a lab school for education majors. Prospective teachers hold internships and students fulfill volunteer hours at the school.
Eighth grader Maddox Mejia was part of a group rallying outside the CSG building on Monday. He said he's benefitted from a tutoring program taught by USF students.
"This is a good school, and I've seen it grow too much to see it all crumble down because we don't have the money to afford it," said Mejia.
