O’Fallon area schools should merge

If a child lives east of Green Mount Road, should the community spend $1,434 less on that child’s education? If a child lives south of Frank Scott Parkway, should the community spend $1,230 less on that child’s education?

Will the money matter after nine years of discounting those children’s educations when they arrive at the doors of O’Fallon Township High School?

The recent layoff notices that went out in O’Fallon’s school districts are a reminder of the inequity and inefficiency of carving up the elementary student populations into haves and have-nots and have-nots. Central Elementary District 104, with the lion’s share of the commercial district fueling its finances, spends the most on its students and was the only district out of the four serving O’Fallon and Shiloh that did not send out layoff notices.

O’Fallon Elementary District 90 told 29 employees that they may not be returning next year. O’Fallon Township High School District 203 told six. Shiloh Village Elementary District 85 also told some employees their jobs might vanish.

While those layoffs likely will not materialize as the property taxes and state funding finally come rolling in, they do demonstrate that there would be greater financial strength benefiting students and efficiencies benefiting taxpayers were the three elementary districts and the high school district all consolidated into a single unit district. Fewer administrators making six-figure salaries, fewer redundant support systems and greater purchasing power would strengthen the finances of all.

Plus, the state offers financial incentives for consolidation. At $4,000 per teacher, that would mean $1.6 million for each of up to three years were the four districts to merge.

The elementary schools looked at consolidation in 2013, but the effort fizzled. Any successful effort must come from the taxpayers driving the merger because the status quo will resist change whether that be to combine O’Fallon area, Belleville area or Fairview Heights area schools.

This story was originally published March 28, 2016 at 2:00 PM with the headline "O’Fallon area schools should merge."