Weiner, Arkansas School Consolidation Plan Fails

School consolidation is a huge issue in Northeast Arkansas. Several years ago, my own high school was consolidated and now the students who live in the district must ride on busses or drive larger distances to attend classes in other districts. When consolidation became a fact for students who live in Weiner, Arkansas citizens hoped to merge the school with the Delight School District. Weiner and Delight are located 200 miles apart but school districts do not need to be close to be annexed, according to Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel. Citizens of both districts hoped to name the new district Arcadia.

Monday February 8, 2010 brought dreams of Arcadia to a close when the Arkansas State Board of Education declined the request to merge the two districts. Citizens in Weiner, Arkansas are concerned the closing of the school will cause the population to decrease and with 760 people in the town (according to the 2000 census) there is not much of a population to lose. As is the case with many small towns, the school district in Weiner is a large employer. Those who work at the school will be forced to look for jobs in other towns.

Already, several students have been lost to other schools in anticipation of the Weiner School District closing.

Community involvement is often affected when small schools are consolidated because the school is the focus of the community. These small communities-often called just "places in the road" by those who live in larger towns are usually very closely knit. Many people in these communities must travel to their jobs but can come together in regard to the school. With consolidation occurring in so many rural areas, it is sad to realize these communities may soon be no more than a "place in the road."

The misunderstanding that consolidation is best for all students because it provides them more opportunities is a false one. Certainly for outgoing students, being allowed an opportunity to be involved in a larger number of extracurricular activities is a good thing. For students who are more shy than outgoing, consolidation may actually cause harm. I did not live in the school district I chose to attend because the smaller school was more willing to work with me when I had a cancer relapse. Because of their help, I graduated high school the year I should have graduated while I watched friends from larger towns be held back from schools being unwilling to work with them.

No final decision has been made in the case of the Weiner, Arkansas school district so citizens must wait in anticipation of what is to come. March 1, 2010 is the deadline for a new plan to try to avoid losing what is the center of their community.

From www.kait8.com reports over the past two months

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weiner,_Arkansas

My own college education and personal experience about consolidation and how it affects students