While the mantra from Kent County Public School Board members before, during, and after the community town meeting last night on school consolidation options in the district was that no decision had been made, there was a palpable sense of skepticism from citizens eager to defend their local schools, including Millington and Worton, from being eliminated.
For more than two hours, the Board, parents, and consultants discussed five possible options or plans for school consolidation, highlighting the painful process any school district faces when considering closing schools.
While there clearly was no consensus reached, it was apparent to all that the deadline of making a decision at the end of this month was not realistic given the possible significant impacts on Kent County’s smaller communities and the children that live there.
The Spy captured some of the major highlights of Wednesday’s meeting.
For more information about Kent County Public Schools consolidation planning process and current consultant reports, please go here.
This video is approximately 53 minutes in length
Brenda Jackson says
I understand that people do not want to see their schools closed. $800,000 is a lot of money to save. Have you looked at saving money by raising class sizes and getting rid of teachers? Can you utilize in-school online options to offer high level courses with low enrollment at the high school? You can probably get rid of 10-15 teachers and save $800,000. As for the buses… Do you need to go door to door to pick up kids? If you have a problem with your younger child standing at the bus stop with older children, stand with him or her until he or she gets on the bus.