Friday, December 2, 2011

Puzzled About Bussing

Cutting $30,000 worth of bussing for students really puzzles me, but I
was puzzled when the school was built in a location that almost
REQUIRES bussing those students too. Was this just for future use as
leverage to get levies passed?
Bill Danielson

from letter emailed to Board of Education Members

I have often wondered why the school was built here also. I was not employed here when those decisions were made. This is not a tool to get future levies passed. I have cut many employees here over the past 4 years. We have gone from 85 teachers to 72 teachers from 2008 to 2011. My options to cut teachers leave me in a situation where I will have 28-30 kids in kindergarten, first grade, and second grade classes. I thought that adequate class sizes at the primary grades were more important than transportation.
Dr. Jamison Grime
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I agree the school is not in an optimal location in regards to the village. However, much thought , planning, and community input went into deciding where to construct the new school. Many locations were looked at and discussed, but found that they were in too low of an area and would cause structural problems. A more centralized location in the village was also not an option. First, there are no open areas within the village large enough for a school. Second, the three buildings (elementary, Superior, and high school) were still being utilized for the education of our students and were not torn down until after the new school was built. I have two young children who attend Montpelier. We live within the two mile distance to school and they will not have the opportunity to ride the bus. I would rather sacrifice bussing instead of quality education. I don't believe there is any "leverage" being used to pass the levy. Many of our present Board members and administrators were not involved with our school district when the decision was made for the construction of our school. Unfortunately, the state of Ohio has cut funding and it is of no fault of our school district.

Thank you,
Todd Altaffer

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