Turkey Run and Rockville Jr./Sr. high schools will consolidate at the start of the 2018-19 school year, a move administrators hope will tackle continuing declines in student enrollment and revenues.
In front of a standing-room only crowd at Turkey Run Wednesday night, the North Central Parke Community School Corp. Board of Trustees approved a series of resolutions setting the plan in motion. The process to combine the schools begins immediately.
“There are many memories of the past that cannot be taken away, however, our responsibility as a school board is to look to the future,” board president Scott Ramsay said in opening remarks.
The board’s decision comes almost a year after an identical proposal was defeated.
Under the plan, the high schools will merge into Rockville’s current facility. Turkey Run’s building will become a middle school for grades 6-8.
Students from Adams and Union townships will attend the current Rockville Elementary, with the existing Turkey Run Elementary housing the rest.
The seven-member board unanimously passed a resolution supporting overall consolidation.
Member Gina Sunderman cast the lone “no” vote on the resolution merging the high schools.
“I represent a district that is in the northern part of the county where there are children that have to travel a far distance to get the Rockville High School location,” she said after the meeting.
“I realize that I represent that I represent all of the North Central Parke Community School Corp. children,” Sunderman continued. “I also was elected by a community that didn’t stand behind the concept of the consolidation of the high school being placed at Rockville.”
Sunderman added she would ultimately support the board’s final decision.
Separate resolutions to consolidate the junior highs and adopt a timeline both passed 5-2.
Parents, students and former and current staff members in the audience said consolidation was the best way forward for the kids.
Roy Wrightsman, who chaired the re-organization committee when North Central Parke formed in 2013, said failing to support it is a disservice to future generations and the community’s well-being.
“We are bigger than that,” Wrightsman said during a public comment period. “We have to move past the old rivalries and look to join together for the betterment of the community, not just some factions of it.”
But the school district came under fire for what parents said was a lack of communication about the plans. Some parents believed the consolidation would happen this fall.
“You’re not going to please everybody,” Grace Johnston said, “but to make it go more smoothly, come up with a clear, concise plan, stick to it –make it easier for everybody.”
Speaking after the meeting, Superintendent Dr. Tom Rohr thanked the community for its support.
Administrators will now focus on aligning curriculum, extra-curricular and transportation schedules and making staff assignments.
School names, colors and mascots are also part of the discussion.
“There’s a tremendous amount of work to do to prepare for the 2018-19 school year,” Rohr said.
