The Community Wants Something Done With Myhre Elementary… [Derived Headline]

By SARA KINCAID

The community wants something done with Myhre Elementary School sooner, but it will have to wait.

The Bismarck School Board received the results of its community forum at its regular meeting Monday night. The forum was Feb. 13 at Simle Middle School.

Overwhelmingly, participants want the school closed and a new school built elsewhere instead of remodeling it. At the same time, a number of participants wanted the board to just do something with the school, whether they remodel or close it.

Even though the community has given the board direction on where it wants to go on some issues, it could take some time before the board makes any decisions.

“This is more long-range planning,” board member Dan Kuntz said. “I don’t think the board will make a decision today or next week on Myhre or grade configuration.”

Along with closing Myhre, participants favored building a school in Lincoln. It was proposed as a possible school site if Myhre closed because the new attendance areas for Myhre students would be at schools where Lincoln students are bused. Consequently those schools would be overcrowded with Lincoln and Myhre students in addition to the regular attendance area students.

The community also voiced support for changing school grade configurations to kindergarten through fifth grade for elementary schools, sixth through eighth grade for middle schools and ninth through 12th grade for high schools.

The next step for the forum results will be a discussion among the board and administration.

“We ought to get together in a month or so,” board member Marcia Olson said. “I’d like a report on what you’d (the administration) think for a direction.”

Superintendent Paul Johnson suggested to the board to have a special meeting or for the administration to put together a list of recommendations for a future board meeting. The board agreed it should meet after the legislative session and before the end of the school year to discuss the issues.

They decided to wait until after the legislative session because some of the issues hinge on what the legislature does. For example, what the board does with all-day kindergarten will depend on whether the legislature passes a bill funding it. Currently, the bill does not mandate it.

The community, however, did not give a clear directive on all- day kindergarten. Some were for it and some were against it. Also, support was split on where to hold all-day kindergarten: at the school, off school site or a kindergarten center.

Other highlights of the forum responses:

Participants supported a new high school. Some participants wanted it to facilitate grade reconfiguration and others wanted it to plan for future growth in the community.

Class sizes and student to teacher ratios are a primary concern of participants. Elementary classes of 20 to 25 students and middle and high school classes of 25 to 30 students was was generally acceptable.

High school and middle school building capacities are on target with the participants’ views of acceptable in the 1,200-student range for high school and the 800-student range for middle school. In the elementary schools, they want schools of about 500 students, which Northridge, Murphy, Centennial, Miller and Solheim are above. Riverside, Roosevelt and Highland Acres are considerable below with student enrollment below 150.

(Reach reporter Sara Kincaid at 250-8251 or sara.kincaid@bismarcktribune.com.) Most want Myhre Elementary closed

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