Well the Ad-Hoc Committee for Grade Configuration met again last night to discuss the potential options regarding building sizes and grade configuration. We went over various scenarios and had some good discussion on all the potential options. When we started this process we had 20 or 21 different items to review and we are now down under 8.
Various scenarios involve busing of students, adding modular units to schools, keeping status quo, school building consolidation or some combination of these. The committee will again review the various options and the impact of the options on the students, on the buildings and on the district budget in preparation for the next meeting.
The next meeting will be 2/24/09 at the District Office at 6:00. At this meeting we will continue to refine the options and get ready for the PUBLIC FORUMS that will be taking place. A date and time has not been set yet for these public forums. At the public forums the committee will be looking to gather feedback on their list of options. This feedback will help the committee work towards a recommendation to the school board.
A sub-committee was designated to begin putting together a presentation of how the committee has gone from the 20 or 21 options to those that will be presented to the public. It will show the reasoning behind elimination of the various items, whether it was a cost issue or a feasibility issue.
On a personal opinion perspective, this issue boils down to 3 components for me. First, what impact will our decison have on the children of the district with regards to their education opportunities? Second, how will the decision affect the district financially? Lastly, how will the options we recommend to the school board impact the short-term and long-term for the district? Again, this is my general thought process as we discuss the various options.
There is not an easy solution to this issue. The various scenarios all impact each student differently. Some have big educational impacts, some have big financial impacts and others are just not practical. Weeding thru these impacts on the remaining options is where the committee is at presently.
If anyone has any questions about this committee or the various options I STRONGLY urge you to contact a committee member. Many rumors/half-truths/stories or what ever you want to call them are floating around. Some good information has also be disseminated by concerned citizens. However, for the best information contact a committee member. Each one should be able to tell you the same information. Also, I will continue to post the meeting information here and once the public forums are set I will be sure to update this information.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
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