What can San Antonio learn from Chicago’s mass school closures in 2013—the largest in U.S. history?
Join us for the first San Antonio screening of Beyond Closure (2024, 55 min), followed by a panel with community members and local leaders on possible pathways to repurpose closed schools in San Antonio.

About the Film:
An original production by Borderless Studio and On The Real Film, Beyond Closure revisits the 2013 shutdown of 50 Chicago public schools, the largest mass closure in U.S. history. It explores how inequity, racism, and injustice shaped the process, while highlighting community-led efforts to reclaim and transform these spaces. Through the stories of Emmet, Woods, and Overton schools (located in West and Southside), the documentary reflects on the struggles, setbacks, and triumphs of residents pursuing redevelopment through self-determination. This film is presented through the story of Creative Grounds, a community-led initiative by Borderless Studio that reimagines the role of school buildings and grounds in the wake of Chicago’s unprecedented closures.