Meeting Set to Discuss Rippey School Closing

SCHOOL BOARD, PUBLIC TO MEET JAN. 18 IN RIPPEY

Patrons of the East Greene School District will have the opportunity to discuss plans to close the classroom portion of the Rippey elementary school at a special public meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 18, at 7 p.m. in the gymnasium of the Rippey building.

The public meeting will be held in conjunction with the board’s regular January meeting. Normally, the board holds one school board meeting each year in Rippey but that meeting—planned for the fall—was rescheduled as the board dealt with various matters pertaining to the upcoming whole grade sharing with Jefferson-Scranton in 2012.

The board voted to hold a public meeting at its regular monthly meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 21 at the ICN Room in the Grand Junction building.

Whole grade sharing and the district’s enrollment declines are the key reasons for phasing out use of the Rippey building as an elementary attendance center. East Greene will continue to offer a separate high school and junior high sports program next year, so the Rippey gym will be used for high school basketball in the winter and high school and junior high volleyball in the fall.

School officials have noted that due to fewer students attending East Greene the top floor of the Rippey building is not used for classroom space. Next year the high school building in Grand Junction will be converted to a 5^th and 6^th grade attendance center as the junior high and high school students will attend classes in Jefferson. EG high school students have been attending a number of classes at Jefferson-Scranton the last several years, and whole grade sharing is regarded by many as the next logical step.

The recommendation to close the Rippey building was first made by a consultant hired by East Greene and Jefferson-Scranton to address whole grade sharing and a possible reorganization of the two districts in the future. He indicated all the K-4 student enrolled in East Greene and the 5^th-6^th grades of both districts could fit comfortably in the Grand Junction building.

Looking down-range a few years, Superintendent Mike Harter told Eye on Grand Junction in the spring that interest has been expressed in buying the Rippey building, but he did not address any firm financial offers or their intended uses for the building. He did not indicate if the interest came from individuals or groups.

In other business Dec. 21, the board:

*  Accepted the resignation of Mailee Kerr as part-time custodian in the Rippey building and hired Zach Hiller, an East Greene senior, to help out in the Rippey building as a replacement for Kerr.

* Reviewed an open enrollment request from a student to open enroll to Ogden.

* Approved a Dropout Prevention Modified Allowable Growth application for $51,842.

* Approved setting driver education fees for East Greene resident students at $200 and non-resident students at $250, and to approve contracts for instructors Dave Kuehl and Mike Harter at $175 per student.

* Scheduled a public hearing for extension of the Instructional Support Levy at 7 p.m. on Jan. 18.

* Scheduled a board work session with Matt Gillaspie of Piper Jaffray on Wednesday, Dec. 28, and a subcommittee meeting with the Jefferson-Scranton school board on Wednesday, Jan. 11. EG and JS boards will hold a joint meeting on Feb. 8.