School consolidation study initiated

WAILUKU - The official in charge of Molokai's public schools said this week that he has initiated a study on whether to consolidate elementary schools on the Friendly Isle.

Complex Area Superintendent Lindsay Ball said he has a list of individuals recommended for a task force that would study closing schools and combining them with others on Molokai. Ball is also considering the official shutdown of Keanae School, which hasn't had students for at least three years but remains an open campus.

"It's not to say a school should be closed," said Randy Moore, assistant superintendent of the Office of Business Services with the state Department of Education in Honolulu. "We're just talking about taking a look, studying it."

Moore said Ball had been asked informally to review the DOE's administrative rules on school consolidation and consider taking action on Molokai.

"We're obviously not going to close all the Molokai schools," he said.

The DOE also is in the midst of identifying other possible clusters or consolidations in Hawaii Kai and Kaimuki on Oahu, and possibly in Upcountry Maui, where there are schools with smaller enrollments, according to Moore.

Maui Complex Area Superintendent Bruce Anderson, who oversees public schools in the Upcountry area, said he has not been asked to study consolidation for any of his campuses.

According to Moore, the administrative rules on school consolidation have been on the books for at least two decades, but very rarely have the rules been implemented. Declining state revenues and a call from Gov. Linda Lingle to reduce government agency budgets by as much as 20 percent prompted public education officials to review all options including shutting down small schools and moving their students to other campuses.

In the DOE's official enrollment report for 2008-09, Maunaloa Elementary had 54 students at the start of the school year. The students could be moved to Kaunakakai Elementary School which had 225 students in the DOE's official count for 2008-09.

Board of Education Member Mary Cochran of Maui said she hopes to hear Molokai residents' thoughts about consolidation during a BOE community meeting set for 5 to 7 p.m. Monday at Kaunakakai Elementary. The meeting is an ongoing effort by the board to regularly meet with constituents and get answers to questions about school and student progress.

Separate public hearings would need to be held on any proposals for school consolidation, but Cochran said it's not too early to start talking about it. Along with Cochran, the board's other Neighbor Island representatives - Herbert Watanabe from the Big Island and Maggie Cox from Kauai - are expected at Monday's meeting.

"I'd like to hear what the people have to say," Cochran said. "The community has got to be involved. You can't just close down a school without talking to people."

Under Chapter 38, the DOE administrative rules that address consolidation of schools, there are three conditions that trigger a study on consolidation:

= One third or more of the square footage in the existing facilities requires replacement or improvements to meet prescribed standards.

= One third or more of the available classrooms are not needed to accommodate the needs for classroom space and educational programs of the school.

= Enrollment decline and staff reductions have or will reduce the capability of the school to provide the range of educational opportunities offered at adjoining schools with larger enrollments. But the adjoining schools must be able to accept increased enrollment without substantial spending for additional facilities.

Ball said Maunaloa Elementary has major repair and maintenance issues that need to be addressed.

He said he's reviewed the recommended names for the school consolidation task force, but he has not yet formalized the formation of the group. No timeline has been set on when the task force would be formed.

Ball said he plans to attend Monday's community meeting, but he's refraining from publicly stating a position on consolidation.

"I have some thoughts but I don't want to share them at this time," he said.

Aside from Molokai, Ball said he's also been asked to consider consolidation of Keanae School - in effect shutting down the school house and campus. There are no students attending the school at the moment, but the department is still responsible for keeping up the campus and facilities.

"Technically it's a DOE school and it still needs to be maintained," Ball said.

Families in Keanae have protested each time the Department of Education has even suggested the idea of shutting down the campus. They've argued that they needed to keep the school open for the sake of the youngest children, who otherwise must take a 16-mile-long bus rides along the narrow, winding highway to and from Hana High and Elementary School. Keanae School is attached administratively to the Hana campus.

Ball, who assumed the job of complex area superintendent for public schools in Hana, Lahaina, Lanai and Molokai on Aug. 1, said he's quite certain that consolidation has been previously discussed and perhaps even resisted on Molokai.

He expects that residents may be torn about the issue, knowing that declining state revenues have forced educators to consider consolidation.

"With anything, there's going to be emotions attached to this," Ball said.

Moore said initial estimates show the Department of Education could save as much as $500,000 a year in closing just one school.

Principal Lydia Trinidad at Kualapuu Elementary, which was converted into a public charter school, said her campus is "quite full" with 375 students. However, Trinidad said she's open to discussing the possibility of having Maunaloa students transfer to her campus, which is closer to the Maunaloa community than Kaunakakai.

"It make sense,"Trinidad said.

She said she would like to be invited to the discussion, if her campus is considered an option for Maunaloa students.

"We would really need to plant it out and study the impact," Trinidad said.

Moore said any consolidation of schools would take at least 12 to 18 months, if not longer.

Claudine San Nicolas can be reached at claudine@mauinews.com.