City Schools Superintendent Jean-Claude Brizard's decision to close Franklin's Bio Science and Health Careers High School and International Finance High School has been temporarily shelved due to concerns from School Board members. Closing the schools requires board approval | Brizard presented plans to close the two high schools at a board committee meeting last month. The schools are in the bottom 5 percent for student performance in the state, and are under state review. Too, they lack support from students and parents. Few name them as their first choice for student placement, and enrollment has dwindled. | But board members Cynthia Elliott and Van White say that the schools are needed because they prepare students for in-demand careers. White also questions if State Education Department threats to close the schools are serious. But Brizard says that is a real possibility. | It is difficult to change public perception about schools with such low performance records, says Mary Doyle, the district's director of school innovation; parents are reluctant to send their children to them. |. Franklin has undergone multiple changes over the years in attempts to better student performance.