The historic former Mathewson Junior High School building in northeast Wichita — most recently home to Chester I. Lewis Alternative High School — will close permanently at the end of this semester, USD 259 officials announced. The 1950s building has deteriorated to the point that district engineers consider it unsafe.
The facility currently houses three programs, all of which will be relocated:
• Chester Lewis Alternative High School will move to the former Cleaveland Elementary School near 31st Street South and West Street. (Cleaveland was closed at the end of the 2023–24 school year.)
• The Early Childhood Outcomes & Pre-K Team will move to the Joyce Focht Instructional Support Center on South Main.
• The Culturally Linguistically Diverse Team will relocate to Jackson Elementary at 29th and Woodlawn.
Together, these programs included about 60 staff members and roughly 115–130 high school students. The Chester Lewis name will remain in use and move with the alternative high school program.
Structural Damage Prompted Immediate Action
District officials said structural failures previously found at North and East high schools prompted a wider review of aging facilities. When engineers examined the Mathewson building, they discovered extensive foundation deterioration, long-term water and sewage damage, and persistent mold and air-quality issues that could not be reliably mitigated. Renovation would be cost-prohibitive, the district said.
While no demolition date has been set, officials emphasized they do not intend for the shuttered building to sit vacant for years, citing safety, air-quality, and vandalism concerns.
Community Concerns Over Loss of History
At a district-sponsored meeting at Tabernacle Baptist Church, many residents voiced concern about losing one of the last remaining historic Black educational institutions in Wichita. From the 1960s until its closure in 1969, Mathewson Junior High served as the city’s only predominantly Black junior high school and was staffed largely by Black educators.
Attendees also expressed worry about moving the Chester I. Lewis name — honoring a key figure in Wichita’s civil rights history — away from the city’s historic Black neighborhood. Administrators said they are open to exploring ways for the Lewis name to remain connected to the community.
Future of the Site
Closing the Mathewson building had been on the district’s radar for years. The narrowly failed $450 million bond proposal would have demolished the building and replaced it with a new child development center, intended to consolidate services now provided at the Little Early Childhood Center less than half a mile away.
Constructing the center at the site remains an administrative goal, but without bond approval, its future is uncertain. District leaders have discussed bringing another bond issue to voters, though it is unclear whether an early childhood center would be included.
Before the building is shuttered, USD 259 plans to host a public farewell event and tour, allowing former students, staff, and community members to say goodbye and help identify historical items worth preserving.