Is SMK Negeri 1 Rancabali in Bandung Really Closing?

A video of a student from SMK Negeri 1 Rancabali in Bandung Regency, West Java, revealing that her school is to be closed has gone viral on social media. In the video, which uses the Sundanese language, the student asks West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi not to close her school. Responding to the circulating video, the Head of the West Java Education Office, Purwanto, explained the chronology of the issue related to the school. “The school is not being closed,” said Purwanto on Thursday, 7 May 2026. According to Purwanto, SMKN 1 Rancabali will only be moved to a new building. He said that until now, the school has been using borrowed facilities from another school. Purwanto stated that the Education Office initially wanted to build a new building in Rancabali Subdistrict. “However, because that area is in a green zone and there is no land for building the school, the location is moved to the border area between Rancabali and Ciwidey Subdistricts,” he said. The new location for SMKN 1 is on government-owned land and the area is a yellow zone. According to Purwanto, there are indeed complaints or objections from students whose homes are closer to the old school location. Especially now that student new admission selection (SPMB) registration is approaching. SMKN 1 Rancabali has four majors: Agribusiness Processing of Agricultural Products, Agribusiness Food Crops and Horticulture, Culinary, and Hospitality. “If they are too far and there are many new students, we will open services at the old school location so the classes will increase or there will be distant classes,” he said. Meanwhile, the Head of the Vocational Secondary School Development Division of the West Java Education Office, Edy Purwanto, also provided clarification through a video upload on social media via the official account of his institution. According to Edy, SMKN 1 Rancabali at the old location does not yet have its own building. Teaching and learning activities are still borrowing the building of State Junior High School (SMP) 3 Cipelah since 2013, as well as the building of State Elementary School 4 Barutunggul since 2018. “For this reason, the West Java Education Office has taken the initiative to establish its own building for SMKN 1 Rancabali,” he stated on Thursday, 7 May 2026. Edy acknowledged that there is a difference in travel distance between the new school and the old one. The travel distance ranges from 10-30 minutes. Currently, the school has 337 actively registered students in four expertise programmes. “Starting in 2026, it is planned that all children will use the new location,” he said. However, there are exceptions for students at the old school. In addition, regarding SPMB, Edy said that parents or prospective new students in the Rancabali area need not worry. “We will still provide special quotas for students domiciled in Rancabali Subdistrict,” he stated.