They recently did major restructuring of my local school system. We had 2 highschools (grades 9-12) , 3 middle schools (grades 6-8), and several elementary schools (K-5). The highschools were completly remodeled within the last 2 years, one brand new elementary school, and three elementary schools remodeled.

One option was to keep the two highschools, but house grades 7-12 and use the best three elementary schools for grades K-6. In the highschool, grades 7 and 8 would be primarily upstairs, except for the arts, gym, and lunch. This option kept ALL teachers (not replacing those retiring).

The other option was to consolidate to one highschool (up to a 2hr bus ride for some students), use the newly vacant highschool to house all middle school students (again, up to 2 hr bus ride for some students), and use best three elemntary schools. This option included a minimum of 40 teachers with lost jobs (not including retirees).

The school board, minus one amazing member, voted on the second option. The lone board member is the only one who suggested that administration costs be cut, operational costs be scrutinized, and seeking more donations from local and state businesses to sustain the sports and arts programs (although the theater, band, and choir have been self-sustainable by "pay to participate" for over a decade.

We are already at roughly 35-45 students per classroom. Losing 40 teachers (a minimum!) is a HUGE deal and is going to add too many students in a classroom. Also, they will be combining two school rivals... which have very strong roots and will cause major issues. It happened ten years ago when they went from three highschools to two... there were major fights and classroom disturbances for a couple of years afterward. This is only going to be intensified this time around.

It is so sad that our community schools have come down to penny-pinching a child's education instead of penny-pinching their own spending habits and wages of the administration.