Action is expected at Jan. 18 meeting
By JIM MAGDEFRAU
Star Press Union editor
Facing declining enrollment – particularly in the lower elementary grades – and a shortfall in revenues because of it, the Benton Community Board of Directors explored its options to reduce sections at a three-hour work session Wednesday, Jan. 11, in Van Horne.
There were about 40 interested patrons, parents and staff at the meeting at the middle-senior high school in Van Horne.
Options
Options for the board, as recommended by an ad-hoc committee, include reducing four sections. The Atkins Center would reduce its fourth grade by one section. There would be three single sections of kindergarten, first grade and second grade at the Norway Center. Van Horne’s center would retain double sections in these grades. To balance the sections, the committee recommended transitioning Blairstown area students from the Norway Center to the Van Horne Center.
Over time, Superintendent Gary Zittergruen said Benton Community needs to move from a six-section delivery system for elementary to a five-section system.
The second option does not involve transitioning students, but would still reduce one section of fourth grade at the Atkins Center. Any reductions in sections would be determined by the numbers of students at a given center. Zittergruen said this does not get to the level of reduction that the first option does, and creates large class sizes at the Van Horne Center.
Zittergruen added a lot of attention has been given to eliminating the Van Horne Center. A significant issue facing the school is the availability of classrooms at the Keystone Center, which is now has grades 3 to 6. Classes would range is size from 27 to 32 students if all of the center’s eight classrooms are used, with no room for double sections.
Newhall Director Roy Becker added the school would still have the expense of maintaining the Van Horne Center. The only way to save money is to sell the facility.
Enrollment
The driving force behind the need to reduce sections is a drop in enrollment. Zittergruen opened the work session with a look at enrollment data. The school’s actual enrollment peaked in 2000-2001 at 1,789.1. Actual enrollment involves head count, open enrollment, alternative settings, home schooling and weighting for special needs.
Except for a few jumps in enrollment, the school has been on a steady decline since then. Benton’s actual enrollment his fall was 1,531.7. This number drives next year’s budget.
Board member Pat Stepanek, representing the Watkins district, asked if the school has looked at why enrollment is dropping – aging population, kids moving away, families moving in without kids, or families open enrolling their kids back into Cedar Rapids or other districts.
Zittergruen said it is a combination of all of these. He added there are very few districts in the state experiencing enrollment growth. He stressed Iowa is an aging state, and there are not as many school-aged kids as there were in the past.
Throughout this time, Zittergruen said the school has prided itself on keeping its class sizes small, with a district average the last decade of 19 students per class.
Numbers that concern the administration involve having the three largest grades – this year’s seniors, juniors and sophomores – leaving the system, while smaller grades come into the system. The students coming in are not keeping up with the number of students leaving the system.
Board discussion
Board discussion focused on having the number of sections be in line with the number of students, looking at enrollment from a K-12 perspective, daycare considerations in Norway and open enrollment.
Stepanek and Norway Director Jack Barnes stressed the need to look at this from a K-12 perspective, with Stepanek pointing out some schools have gone to a 6-8 middle school concept.
Stepanek suggested reducing three sections without moving kids around, which could up the class sizes at Keystone, but the sizes at Keystone would not be any different than what they have now at Norway. He said this would buy time, reduce sections, and not cause any turmoil through shuffling around of students.
Barnes said if students are transitioned to another center, it will cause an increase in open enrollment, which directly impacts the school’s revenue stream.
Stepanek added parents were concerned about the logistics of working in Cedar Rapids, and having a student on the western part of the district in Keystone.
Blairstown director Wayne Reinhardt said his four kids went to school in three centers. It was not convenient, but moving from center to center is nothing new in Benton Community. He questioned how far the district wants to go to make things convenient for parents. With over 1,500 students, there are 1,500 different scenarios, and the school is not going to suit all 1,500.
Keystone director Bill Boise pointed out there are Keystone area parents who work in other places, too, and it’s something they’re used to.
Barnes countered that some parents will have to go from a five-minute turnaround to get their kids to a 40-minute trip to get their children. He said the Blairstown area people will open enroll out if they have to do this.
Van Horne director Brian Strellner said that no matter what the school board does, people are going to be upset.
The board also discussed daycare, in which several Blairstown area families work at Frontier Natural Products south of Norway, take their kids to daycare there, and the kids are shuttled to the Norway Center.
Zittergruen said a waiver could be developed for these families, but a line has to be drawn on who gets waivers. It’s also possible to transport these students from the daycare to the Van Horne Center.
Barnes still saw the transitioning of students as the start of a logistics war, since the main reason for open enrollment is logistics.
The board looked at a timeline. Zittergruen said action needs to be taken as soon as possible, since the decision impacts staff, families and transitions. “Lots of things have to take place. It’s going to take time,” he said.
He added the board owed due diligence to the committee that made the recommendation to take action. It doesn’t have to approve it, but the board at least has to consider the recommendation and make adjustments if needed.
Barnes stressed the school needs to make reductions without “upsetting the apple cart,” otherwise the board will be in the same position next year.
Board president Dan Voss, Atkins, added there is no “perfect option,” saying, “If there was, we wouldn’t be here.”
Action is expected at the Jan. 18 meeting. Get an update on this at yourweeklypaper.com.
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