(Radio Iowa) – Leaders of the Orient-Macksburg School District in southwest Iowa are considering dissolving the district, something that hasn’t happened in Iowa since the Corwith-Wesley Schools shut down in 2015.

Orient-Macksburg Superintendent Jeff Kruse says it’s not an easy decision, and there are several factors the board is considering for closing the nearly 65-year-old school district. Kruse says the primary concerns are dropping student numbers and finding qualified teachers.

“Staffing is an issue that the district’s faced, like a number of other schools,” Kruse says, “and secondly, enrollment. The district has a certified count of about 170 students, but we serve approximately 100 students because we have a large number of enrolled out compared to open enrolled in.” Kruse says financial projections show the district will be overspending its authority within the next year or so.

He says Orient-Macksburg had to spend almost all of its carryover balance to ensure requirements are met, leaving little funding flexibility. The superintendent says accreditation has been another issue due to class sizes.

“In order to be accredited, you have to offer certain curriculum and it has to be taught,” he says. “Because of our small class sizes, it’s sometimes difficult to get students in all the courses that need to be taught to meet certification.”

Last fall, Kruse says Green Hills AEA conducted a feasibility study for the district that provided several options for the district. One option included whole grade sharing with the Nodaway Valley School District at the 7-12 grade level, while continuing to operate a pre-K-6 district. Kruse says the financial side of keeping the district open doesn’t add up for the school board.

“While re-organization is an option that some districts go through,” Kruse says, “because of all the consolidation and the distance our district has, they just felt it would be better off if we explored dissolving. Then we could allow neighboring districts, if they want to be a part of that dissolution process, to acquire some of the district.”

While the voters have the final say via a ballot question requiring a simple majority, according to Iowa Code, if the school board goes in the direction of dissolution, it will have 15 days to form a seven-person dissolution committee made up of people who live in the district and are eligible to vote.

“That commission is held responsible for contacting neighboring school districts to see if they would like to acquire part of the property of Orient-Macksburg,” Kruse says. “Then, secondly, they would develop boundary lines to separate the district with those other neighboring districts.”

School board members are expected to formally consider dissolving and have a decision by the end of next month, which would not take effect until after the 2024-25 school year. Orient merged with Macksburg in 1960 to form the current district, which covers parts of Adair, Madison, Adams, and Union counties.