Proponents of a plan to consolidate Athens' four elementary schools into a single, larger campus say the change could help students, but according to some researchers, students suffer in larger schools.
The proposed consolidation of the schools by the district’s Facilities Steering Committee is meant to improve equity among students in a district that, according to data from the United States Department of Education, is polarized.
According to Niche, a website that compiles data from the Department of Education, the FBI and other sources, the number of students who receive free or reduced-cost lunch at each school vary greatly. At The Plains, 76 percent of students receive free or reduced-cost lunch, whereas at East Elementary, only 22 percent of students do.
Athens City Schools Superintendent Tom Gibbs said the new building would provide a uniform educational experience.
"We’re basing it on building buildings for about 200 students per grade level," Gibbs said. "In regards to how many classrooms there are for each class, the plan was to have ten classrooms for each grade level, so about 20 students per class on average, understanding that it would fluctuate from year to year."
In a survey sent to citizens of Athens, opinions varied on whether the schools should be consolidated.
“While it is nice to have all your kids in the same school, I think that grade level schools would help with the inequity that exists currently,” one parent said in the survey. “Having had my children at both the Plains and Morrison and having attended East myself as a child, there is quite a disparity. It seems that the more economically and educationally challenged children are often shuffled to The Plains.”
In a previous Post report, Athens Mayor Steve Patterson said consolidation could lessen the inequity in the district.
“There’s a sense out there that the educational experience at the different schools can be influenced by one’s socioeconomic status,” Patterson said. “Combining them together mitigates that to some degree.”
Not everyone agrees with Patterson's stance. A petition created by a group called “Small Schools for ACSD” has garnered nearly 400 signatures, and the group claims there is a large body of research against consolidation.
Research by former Ohio University professor Craig Howley suggests smaller schools are actually more effective at improving equity than consolidation.
“Smaller schools promote substantially improved equity in achievement among all students, and smaller schools may be especially important for disadvantaged students,” Howley’s report states.
According to Howley’s research, which is based on tests conducted across the country, schools should “not design, build, or sustain mega-schools serving upwards of 500 to 2,000 students.”
However, not all researchers agree with Howley’s stance. Researchers William D. Duncombe and John M. Yinger for the American Association of School Administrators claim in their research that consolidation helps cut costs and allow districts to provide more services to students.
“Larger districts may be able to employ more specialized teachers, putting them in a better position to provide the wide range of courses required by state accountability systems and expected today by students and parents,” Duncombe and Yinger's report states.
According to the Facilities Steering Committee’s financial forecast, Athens City Schools may desperately need reduced costs. On the current budget, the district makes $137,913 more than it spends, but by the year 2021, it will operate at a loss of more than $3 million. While the district would still have a positive balance, it would have less money for extra activities.
Gibbs said the state, which the Facilities Steering Committee has been working with, would provide funding for the renovations.
