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Proposed Atoll and Hereford closures draw strong rural pushback as board weighs $126,000-per-school savings
Summary
As part of the deficit plan, administrators proposed closing Atoll and Hereford elementary schools (each estimated to save about $126,000). Rural parents, teachers and community leaders urged the board to delay, said the district lacked comprehensive net‑cost analyses and raised concerns about long bus rides, enrollment loss and community impacts.
Administrators proposed closing Atoll and Hereford elementary schools to reduce costs, each closure estimated to save approximately $126,000 in operating expenses tied to teacher and paraprofessional positions. The superintendent said state law requires a board resolution by Dec. 1 to initiate the closure process and that patrons may petition to force a public vote if the resolution passes.
Public comment filled the meeting’s second half. Rural parents and teachers said the administration’s savings estimates do not account adequately for transportation costs, extra bus runs, potential enrollment loss and community harm. "Closing the school is not just about relocating students, it fundamentally impacts the community," teacher Becca Grama Smith told the board. Several residents warned that long travel on minimally maintained gravel roads would be dangerous and that families could leave the district.
Administrators replied that they had modeled cost ranges (best/worst case), that transportation alternatives and van/bus acquisition options were under study and that the board could consider suspension rather than immediate closure; the administration also offered to provide more detailed analyses and to discuss alternatives such as consolidations, opt‑outs and targeted program changes.
