TRIPP - It's decision time for the Tripp-Delmont School Board.
Following a joint school board meeting with Armour Thursday, and Parkston Monday, the Tripp-Delmont board has met with both school districts who remain in consolidation talks with the district and plans to vote on a consolidation preference at Monday's regularly scheduled monthly meeting.
Unlike discussions Monday in Parkston, there was less of a question mark punctuating the more "emotional" points of a consolidation, as the two schools already share an athletics co-op.
And with the athletics co-op already in effect, the boards said Thursday, students from both districts are already accustomed to one another and would only be adjusting to new staff.
"We have school colors, a mascot, a school song - those emotional things are very hard," Tripp-Delmont Superintendent Gail Swenson said. "That would at least be something."
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But, Armour Superintendent Andrea Powell said, the Tripp-Delmont district's non-negotiable item of maintaining an attendance center in Tripp may be difficult to accommodate.
To an extent, some Tripp-Delmont students would likely remain in the current Tripp-Delmont building, but bussing Armour students to Tripp is not possible.
"I'm not saying we can't look at options, but, in my community, I would not be able to pass this, if I said we were loading students that we currently house and shipping them to away," Powell said.
And Tripp-Delmont Board Member Lynn Schoenfelder was curious how reorganization would look for staff at each school. Primarily, Schoenfelder asked for "everybody to be equal," should all staff be released and a rehiring process occur.
Powell said it's too soon to tell, but Armour intends to be fair, open and honest with Tripp-Delmont, as both district's have "exceptional" staff.
"When we make projections from a bird's eye view, we can cause a lot of fear in a lot of people," Powell said. "I don't think we're even close to being able to say how that would happen down the line - there's still a lot to be done."
Throughout the lengthy process of choosing its consolidation preference, Tripp-Delmont has maintained the notion that a consolidation is its backup plan. First, the district is focusing on opting out of state-mandated tax limits, which would allow the district to raise taxes. Tripp-Delmont can currently collect $300,000 in tax dollars, but it could rise to $600,000, if approved.
In 2000, there were 296 students enrolled in the Tripp-Delmont School District, and as of Monday, Swenson reported 162 students enrolled, representing a loss of 134 students, or approximately 54 percent of the student body. Swenson hoped Tripp-Delmont would receive more state funding following the passage of a half percent sales tax increase intended to bolster South Dakota teacher salaries, but the district received $14,690, one of the lowest totals of new money in the state.
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Paired together, the declining enrollment and low funding allocations has severely altered Tripp-Delmont's timeline for a consolidation. Originally, the board believed it had several years to make a decision, but now the district must acquire a new opt out, consolidate or dissolve in the next two years.
Tripp-Delmont's consolidation talks with several area districts began in August with Avon, Menno, Armour, Parkston and Scotland, and has since been narrowed down to two - Parkston and Armour.
In an August survey of Tripp-Delmont district residents, 58 people said they would prefer consolidation with Armour, and 71 said Parkston, should a consolidation occur. Surveyed members of Tripp-Delmont's staff preferred Armour over Parkston by a 14-12 margin.