Parents ask Monessen to consider a school merger
MONESSEN – Several parents of students in the Monessen School District on Tuesday asked the school board to consider merging with another one to improve educational opportunities.
Teresa Speicher, who has children ages 11, 6, and 4 attending schools within the district, said she attended a recent town hall meeting to express her concerns for opportunities and activities for her children that she feels are lacking within the district. Speicher said a merger with another district could increase academic and extracurricular activities for the students.
“This is about what is right for the children, the taxpayers and the community,” Speicher said. She said with the student experience deteriorating it is crucial to take action.
Speicher said the high school was close to not having enough students for a football team. She said without a football team, other activities, such as cheerleading and marching band, would have been affected.
“Our students deserve better and we can do better than this,” Speicher said.
Alisa Ray, who has children in fifth and sixth grades, also spoke in support of a merger. Ray said seeing a decline in enrollment has made her concerned for her children and their educational opportunities.
“I’m afraid it’s not going to be there when my children reach that level,” Ray said. She said if the pattern continues within the district, she will have to consider moving within the next two years. “It’s time for forward thinking and serious change,” Ray said. Neither mother indicated what district they would like to see a merger considered.
Monessen’s enrollment has declined 7 percent in the last five years, with 820 students currently enrolled for the 2016-17 year, Dr. Leanne Spazak, district superintendent, said Wednesday.
Spazak told the board she has done a lot of research on mergers and has found that in many cases activities for students decrease because of transportation issues.
“These kids can’t make it to out-of-district activities,” Spazak said. She said the only two reasons for a merger are if a district can’t maintain itself financially and if it can no longer provide activities for students. She said enrollment is not a factor when considering a merger.
Spazak said Monessen offers the same academic classes as other school districts and has an advantage because of its smaller size. “Kids get individualized attention in a smaller setting,” she said.
The school is the city’s largest asset, Spazak said, and a merger would be detrimental to the community. “If we can ever not sustain ourselves financially and we are not providing our students with what we consider a quality education, then (a merger) would be my recommendation,” Spazak said.
She said the district is currently providing students with a quality education and she hopes the improvements can be seen.
Board President Lee Johnson said the board knows it has work to do and they don’t plan to shy away from that fact. Johnson said everyone needs to work together and stay strong as a community.
“Our mission and goal is to continue to work on Monessen High School and Monessen School District. Period,” Johnson said.
The board on Tuesday added new teachers to the district’s staff in preparation for the 2016-17 school year and introduced a new positive behavior support plan that will go into effect this year.