A new option on Ohio’s table

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OHIO — As the Ohio High School district and residents continue to debate the future of the high school, a neighboring school district has put another option on the table.

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Quintin Shepherd, superintendent of the Amboy Community Unit School District, has asked Ohio Superintendent Sharon Flesher if the district would be interested in participating in a reorganization feasibility study, which could eventually include a new co-op high school with surrounding schools. Amboy is located about 18 miles northeast of Ohio in Lee County and houses its about 1,000 students in three buildings in Amboy.

Flesher said Shepherd contacted her recently to ask if Ohio would like to be included in the study.

“It was just a ‘heads up,’ and he’s supposed to get us more information,” she said. “The board will have to decide whether to be part of the study.”

On Wednesday, Shepherd said the idea for the feasibility study goes back 18 months in Amboy, when his school board had a serious discussion about the condition of its buildings, including a junior high facility that’s almost 100 years old and in need of work. In the process of discussing whether to spend the money on the necessary upgrades, Shepherd said the board members also talked about  declining enrollment figures, both in Amboy and in nearby districts.

Shepherd knew the Illinois State Board of Education provided grants for feasibility studies for school districts, in which a consultant is hired to review districts and their future options. He applied and was approved for last year. Amboy approved the study, but when he contacted the Ashton Franklin Center School District about participating, its board declined.

So Shepherd talked with Flesher and said she indicated there was the possibility of some interest from the Ohio District.

Shepherd said the study would show the districts what they don’t know. The consultant would look at everything from tax rates and finances to enrollment trends, transportation issues, building conditions and staffing, and then provide a list of different options, which could include a co-op high school.

“It would then be up to the boards to take the information and decide how to proceed,” he said. “Maybe we’re fine where we’re at.”

Shepherd said the current application includes just Amboy and the Ohio High School districts, but could grow to include the Ashton Franklin Center, LaMoille, or even the Ohio Grade School districts, if their boards were interested.

Since it’s the end of the current fiscal year, Shepherd said the next step is to wait for the ISBE to once again allocate funds for the feasibility studies. If those funds are allocated, the next step would be for the Amboy and Ohio boards to approve participation in the feasibility study.

And then?

“We hire a consultant, and then it’s a long, drawn out process,” Shepherd said.

No matter what decisions the boards eventually make, Shepherd said it’s valuable to find out everyone’s options.

“The biggest enemy any of us has is what we don’t know,” he said.