District Reconfiguration Plan
In the Summer of 2016 the District began working with the Ohio Schools Facilities Commission (OSFC) to conduct an initial assessment of our current facilities and provide enrollment projections. The results of the OSFC assessment conclude:
- Enrollment is projected to decline 10 percent over the next ten years
- Reducing the number of elementary buildings will help streamline operational efficiencies
With this information in hand the District formed the Enrollment/Reconfiguration Task Force in September 2017, which is comprised of at least one parent and two teacher representatives from each building, and district and building administrators.
While the significant planning work is being completed by district personnel with particular expertise in various areas of our program (transportation, special education, curriculum, etc.), the parent representatives serve as a valuable sounding board, offering important questions and feedback to inform the process.
Among the tasks that must be completed are the following:
- Determination of building capacities to meet the space needs of our current/projected enrollment.
- Consideration of curricular options that may become available as a result of restructuring.
- Evaluation of school starting times.
- Revision of transportation systems to safely and efficiently move students to their destination.
- Evaluation of staffing needs under a reconfiguration plan.
- Evaluation of overall cost savings as a result of reconfiguration.
- Logistics of implementing the reconfiguration option
The target to have a recommendation from the Task Force is February of 2018. Assuming that is accomplished, it is possible that the Board of Education would consider the reconfiguration plan during a public meeting in February. If the Board approves the reconfiguration plan, we would then begin the roll-out process to our entire school community.
This being said, a strong line of communication is always our priority. Any statements of “fact” in the community that a particular school is closing, or that certain actions are being taken is simply not accurate at this time. We are continuing to explore the feasibility of reconfiguration and carefully evaluating the cost/benefit of implementing a plan that is right for our district.