While not a final decision, the Oak Harbor School Board Monday unanimously approved allowing officials to continue plans to close Clover Valley Elementary School.
The final decision doesn’t have to be made until the end of April, but Monday’s action pretty much seals the fate of the school.
“While this isn’t a final decision, it’s virtually final,” Superintendent Rick Schulte said during the meeting.
School leaders can now move forward with making staff transfers and adjust school boundaries to reflect five elementary schools instead of six.
Officials estimate approximately $546,000 will be saved by closing the school.
Schulte said that under one scenario, Clover Valley might only remain closed between three and five years. By that time the school district could have to implement programs requiring 12 to 15 additional teachers. Those programs could range from instituting all-day kindergarten or adding teachers to further reduce class sizes.
“I think it could happen in three to five years,” Schulte said.
One board member said the enrollment decline that prompted the school closure could continue for years.
“There is no evidence that says this is going to bottom out,” said board member David McCool. “I’m not so sure that our population will stabilize in three to five years.”
Enrollment in the Oak Harbor School District has declined from a high of 6,000 students in 1999-2000 to a projected enrollment of 5,200 students in the 2007-2008 school year.
Schulte said Clover Valley’s closure is contingent on accurate enrollment projections. In hindsight, he admitted to being more optimistic than warranted about recent enrollment projections. That optimism came from a new Navy squadron at the base and the new homes being built in the area. Neither produced as many children as anticipated.
Should the school district see an influx of elementary school-aged students in the near future, there are options to accommodate them.
Portable classrooms could be moved to affected schools, adding seven to eight additional classrooms districtwide. If the need is big enough, there is still an empty elementary school that could be used.
“If all else fails we still have Clover Valley Elementary,” Schulte said.
It looks like Clover Valley will be used to house freshmen during the renovation of Oak Harbor High School.
Schulte said Clover Valley would need minor capital improvements to accommodate the high school students.
The closure of Clover Valley Elementary School will help school leaders make up an estimated $3.5 million budget shortfall in the district’s 2007-2008 budget.
