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Local News

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Merger? Arcadia to survey citizens

Ewald Furniture
By MICHELLE REITER

STAFF WRITER

Whether Arcadia and Vanlue school districts consider a merger may be up to the residents of Arcadia.

After receiving a letter from Vanlue School officials, requesting a meeting to discuss merging the districts and possibly building a new school, Arcadia school board replied with a letter of its own, saying it wanted to survey its community first.

That letter was read Monday night at a Vanlue school board meeting during an open discussion about the future of the school district.

Vanlue board members said if Arcadia takes too long to decide if it wants to merge -- or discuss merging -- Vanlue won't wait. Vanlue is also considering talking to other districts about mergers, like Carey or Riverdale.

“I'd say (Arcadia) is very neutral at this time,” Vanlue board member Jonathan Thomas said Monday. “They've got a lot of work to do on their end. There's a potential for us to talk to Carey or Riverdale in the near future.”

He also said a decision does not have to be made immediately.

Vanlue school board hasn't yet openly discussed the idea of merging with another district in order to solve a financial crisis that looms for the district.

But at a meeting in February, Vanlue residents were invited to look over the district's books. As early as 2009, the school district may be facing a shortfall of about $500,000 a year, if it doesn't get additional revenue.

In Vanlue, that is the equivalent of an additional 1.25 percent income tax or 18 mills in property taxes.

Although school officials are moving to cut expenses next school year, there is not much left to trim.

Vanlue's enrollment numbers are also dropping, which means that each student costs more to educate. In 2004, it cost about $6,760 to educate a child in Vanlue. The cost has now increased to $8,321.

Most of the discussion regarding the district's future has been among Vanlue community members, according to parents who attended the meeting Monday. Rumors have been circulating that teachers without enough seniority would be losing their jobs, for example, and that the Vanlue School would be closing in two years.

The truth is, school board members said, they don't know what is going to happen.

“There have been no decisions made,” said board member Gregg Arnold.

However, Vanlue Superintendent Rodney Russell said he has told teachers that if the district makes changes in the future, “it could be that somebody might not have a job.”

For now, however, that's all speculation.

What isn't speculative is the need for money in the district.

“If it comes down to pushing tax levies and they don't pass, what option do we have?” Arnold said.

Russell noted that Vanlue is already ranked first in the county in school taxes for residents, “when you're looking strictly at millage.”

The superintendent said the district is looking at merging with Arcadia because of its enrollment. Arcadia has 633 students in its district, and Vanlue has 286 this year. If the districts merged, enrollment would be under 1,000.

“There are a lot of options on the table,” Thomas said. “And we're going to continue discussions. Right now there's a lot of uncertainty of what the future holds, and we don't want that to drag on. Our preference is to keep moving.”

The survey of Arcadia residents may not be taken for another two or three months, and the process of merging could take years.

A merger of school districts can be accomplished through several different procedures.

School districts within the same county's educational service center territory, as Vanlue and Arcadia are, may initiate a resolution by the service center's governing board to unite.

In counties with a population of less than 100,000, two school districts can also create a merger commission to study the merits of a consolidation. A recommendation to merge from the commission can be subject to voter approval.

Voters may also place a merger issue on the ballot through a petition drive.

The Ohio Department of Education has the authority to dissolve a school district and reallocate its territory if a district is found unable to comply with state operating standards.

The state can also order a study to determine if a new school district should be created, or an existing district transferred. Any proposal would be subject to voter approval.

Thomas urged those with questions to call the district at 419-387-7724.

Contact Staff Writer Michelle Reiter at: 419- 427-8497 Send an e-mail to Michelle Reiter
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