Harrold School Board did well by community

Published/Last Modified on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 06:06:14 am CDT

The Harrold School District has had a tumultuous few years. Not only did the small school about 34 miles east of Pierre discover that it would have to consolidate, but it went through two unsuccessful consolidation efforts before voters in the Harrold and Hyde County school districts finally approved the consolidation.

Officials in the district have handled the difficult situation appropriately by sticking to their beliefs and requiring negotiations to make the best of the situation for their community.

From the very beginning of the process, the Harrold School District set out stipulations that the school gymnasium needed to remain available for the community. This was an agreed-upon part of the consolidation between the Hyde County School District in Highmore and the Harrold district. It also would have been a part of the deal if the consolidation had been approved with Stanley County in 2006.

The district also gave the city more than $100,000 from the district’s Capital Outlay fund to start a fund for operation and maintenance of the gymnasium — also part of the agreement, according to Harrold School Board Vice President Sue Sommer.

This week, the Capital Journal discovered that the new school board formed for the consolidated district instructed the superintendent of the consolidated district to script letters of opposition to that transfer of funds.

We believe the Harrold School District is doing well by its community, which should be the focus when the only school in a community must consolidate or dissolve completely. Without a school, many activities in the district will cease, and the town residents must be in self-preservation mode. Also, if this transaction was agreed upon in the terms of the consolidation, it seems disingenuous at best that voters who approved those terms would attempt a take-back at this point.

A city the size of Harrold would not have adequate funds to operate a community gymnasium or auditorium without start-up money. And a city the size of Highmore should know that.

Also opposed in letters written by the consolidated district superintendent under direction of the board was the Harrold district’s decision give approximately $60,000 in bonuses to its staff.

School officials said the bonus pay came from unexpected Impact Aid money the school received, so it would not have been considered in any negotiations with the Hyde County School District. The Harrold School District is still in charge of its own funds until June 30, when the consolidated district will officially take over the school’s operations.

Officials of the combined district expressed beliefs that those dollars could have been better spent in the new district. Of course, there is some truth to the idea that a school district, especially a small one, can use an extra $60,000.

But the fact is, most of the staff at the Harrold School has known for several years they would likely be out of jobs at the end of this school year, yet they stuck with the district, gloomy outlook and all.

Only four staff members of 19 have been guaranteed jobs in the new district. Call it severance pay, an incentive to stay or simply a bonus for a job well-done, it’s not unusual for professionals to receive extra pay for good work. We say these staff members deserve the extra $2,500 to $3,000 apiece awarded to them.

The Harrold School District was looking out for its own in both of these situations, and though the decisions may have been controversial, we hope the newly formed district will move beyond that and show as much care for its new community as the Harrold district did for its old one.

Print this story Post A Comment

WARNING:

• Comments are not verified for accuracy nor have we verified the identity of any person’s name accompanying a comment, so please consider this as you weigh any statements made or opinions offered.

NOTE:

• Comments will not be posted if submitted in all caps, or all lower case, or do not show a reasonable attempt to follow basic rules of grammar and punctuation, nor will text-message like abbreviations be accepted, like ur for your.
• Postings must stay on the issues related to the thread and not veer off into personal comments about others. The tone of the post must be civil. For example, you can say someone’s ideas are stupid but you cannot say another poster is stupid.
• Postings must deal with matters of public concern.

Comments

11 comment(s)

Mr. Obvious wrote on Jun 9, 2008 10:40 PM:

" If the Harrold board was so proud of their education, how come 1 board member sent their kids to Highmore, 1 board member sent there kids to Pierre, and another board member has his going to ABO? Not to mention the 4 staff members who sent their kids to other districts. Anyone see a pattern here? A lack of faith in their own education system. I'm sure the new board will prevail for the betterment of the children. "

Harrold Taxpayer wrote on Jun 8, 2008 9:39 AM:

" If Harrold truly cared about their kids, they would have closed that home school atmosphere and provided a better education for their children. They're taking the small school atmosphere too far! The taxpayers money should have been utilized better. "

SC patron wrote on Jun 6, 2008 9:51 AM:

" to Pierre resident, I think Harrold has been trying for years to consolidate with an area school. My understanding is that they always came in like they were in charge. They demanded things, weren't ready to cooperate and basically became a liability to area districts.Highmore will be fine, but I do not envy the new board trying to work with some of the attitudes these new families bring. it is unfortunate that they had to close, but quit acting like all the work negotiating with them was worth it. They lost control of their district "

cared about harrold school wrote on Jun 4, 2008 9:05 PM:

" At least there is people that were willing to stay in Harrold School and teach, drive bus, cook meals and janitorial work. What would of we had if everybody would had bailed out. Now I call that caring about the kids and our community. "

Somewhere out there wrote on Jun 4, 2008 8:50 PM:

" I agree with TS 100% !! "

TS wrote on Jun 3, 2008 5:57 PM:

" These taxes were raised local, statewide, and federally to educate students. It was not raised to help local communities maintain community centers. The funds should of followed the students! "

Lets be rational wrote on May 30, 2008 9:42 AM:

" Nothing Harrold did was underhanded, illegal or unethical. The issue about the auditorium has been part of their negotiations from day one. All districts they approached understood that. In the case of immediate gain (Harrold receives money to maintain a community meeting place, teachers are rewarded with funds given to The Harrold District, not Highmore's) as opposed to future gain(Highmore acquired a tax base that will go far in paying off their school building and provide, hopefully, an excellent education for all the students in the new district.), Highmore wins hands down from a financial point of view. "

Pierre Resident wrote on May 28, 2008 8:45 PM:

" Responding to the comment by Lets be truthful-Sounds to me like you need to get over the idea of being grateful for what that district is getting and be grateful that someone gave Harrold a chance. SC and ABO sure weren't interested in taking you on. "

Kay wrote on May 28, 2008 11:26 AM:

" If the Harrold School board did not want what's best for the kids & town why did they work so hard to find a consolidation solution? They could've just given up and let the school close and the district dissolve. People are always saying we should run schools like businesses. In business employees are often given bonuses & severance pay. The bonus those teachers got probably doesn't come close to what they spent out of their own pockets over the years on things for their classrooms. Best wishes to a dedicated staff. "

Lets be truthful wrote on May 27, 2008 9:11 PM:

" If anyone out there wants the real breakdown of the money given to the city of Harrold and for bonuses, check out the Harrold School Board minutes in the Highmore Herald. All "34-2" is concerned about is what they are not getting, and how Harrold is depriving the students. What, almost a million dollars in cash and assets isn't enough? Not to mention the additional tax revenue they will receive. Get over the idea you are entitled to more and be grateful for what you are getting. "

Lets be reasonable wrote on May 24, 2008 12:14 PM:

" Sue Sommer is once again misleading the public with "small town scare tactics". The agreement between the districts was for the city to have the gym and 100K. This "gift" has ended up inflating to a rediculous 65K in bonuses, 150K in monies to a city that has more than 300K in assets. Don't be fooled, the city of Harrold is well off; especially after this gift. The only contesting I see from 34-2 are the bonuses and the extra 50K, AND what other assets Harrold determines not to give to the kids of 34-2. "

WRITE A COMMENT

Use the form below to post a brief comment to this story, or respond to other readers. Please use the word count tool to assist you in keeping your remarks to 100 words or fewer.

Comments must be approved by an editor before appearing on the Web site. Editors review submitted comments periodically during the day for offensive or off-topic content before posting. Your thoughtful contribution to the online discussion is appreciated.