De Pere schools should unite

De Pere schools should unite
Date: Nov 18, 2004 Green Bay Press Gazette - Green Bay, Wis.
Section: Opinion

Both the De Pere and West De Pere school districts are tentatively looking at referendums in support of new elementary schools in November 2005. De Pere voters defeated a referendum earlier this month and the School Board is back to revising its plans to find ways to ease crowding. 

We urge the two districts to revisit the issue of consolidation. De Pere is the only city in the state with two separate school districts. The Fox River has always been a powerful divider in the communities it runs through, but it's time to cross it and work together in the interest of saving taxpayers' money and continuing to provide excellent curriculum.

Consolidation is a tough argument to make in these districts with their long history of being divided. Right now, both school districts offer the same basic curriculum and educational services, tax residents at almost identical rates and face similar building and space needs. 

With home building booming in both districts, administrators have been able to hold the line on tax rates, but that can't last forever. 

Most school district mergers have been prompted when a smaller district merges with a larger one to improve the educational offerings for students, or a higher-taxed district will merge with a lower-taxed district. The last school mergers in Wisconsin were Arkansaw and Durand in 1992 and Bloomington and West Grant in 1995. In the 1992 merger, a smaller school district with a spacious new high school and high taxes merged with a bigger district facing a space crunch. In the 1995 merger, both districts faced shrinking enrollment and opted to join together rather than see their taxes skyrocket. 

In De Pere, neither of these scenarios is at work. Both have growing enrollments. Figures for De Pere show that the elementary schools will exceed their combined capacities of 1,200 students by about 100 students next year. In West De Pere, elementary enrollment -- including preschoolers -- is at 768, just 32 shy of Westwood's capacity of 800. Both districts are looking at buying property for new elementary schools before they bring the matter to voters next year.

As the districts grapple with the problems of crowding, we urge them to discuss consolidation as they seek a solution.