The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
By David Grimes, The Quill
BIGGSVILLE - Consolidation talks involving the Southern and Union school districts has stirred interest among Lomax residents who want to know if they can be included in the merger mix.
Henderson County Board member Marty Lafary, Gladstone, Ill., told the Union-Southern Committee of 10 this week that at least two Lomax-area residents have approached him to inquire about the possibility of being included in the consolidation proposal.
Lomax is in Henderson County, but is within the Dallas City School District. Dallas City sits on the Henderson-Hancock count line, with the elementary school in the Hancock County portion of town.
Dallas City high school students are tuitioned into Nauvoo-Colusa High School as a result of Dallas City High School's closing two-and-a-half years ago, and an ensuing reorganization agreement between Dallas City and Nauvoo-Colusa.
Prior to that arrangement, Dallas City and Southern officials had discussed tuitioning in Dallas City high school students at Southern. Those talks slowed and eventually fell apart in March 2001, after which the Dallas City and Nauvoo-Colusa agreement was forged.
But Lomax, the community in the Dallas City district farthest removed from Nauvoo, demonstrated strong support in favor of the failed proposed agreement with Southern.
Dallas City, Nauvoo-Colusa, Carthage and LaHarpe school boards are in the initial stages of reorganization talks themselves, with the first public information meeting held Jan. 7 in Carthage.
But some in Lomax believe even if that grouping is successful in getting a merger question on the ballot - either this November or in April 2005 - an additional building bond issue for the creation of a new high school facility will doom the proposal.
"They don't think it will pass in their district," Lafary told the committee.
Still, Lomax may have to wait if it wants to be included in a single Henderson County school district.
Committee member Karen Jack said Lomax has not gone unnoticed in planning for a new county district, but the community's interest hasn't been realized.
The Committee of 10 has said that a two-district consolidation would not be an end in itself, but only a first step toward an expanded school district, and that other districts - or portions of other districts - would be considered in future merger plans.
"There may be other districts fragmented by this (consolidation) before it's over," said committee member Brian Heap.
Heap said now that the group knows there is interest in Lomax, an effort will be made to include residents from that community in discussions about coming on board down the road.
But because of the amount of work ahead for the committee and the impending timeline for the Southern-Union proposal, including deadlines for approval of a ballot petition by regional and state education officials, including Lomax in the group at the present time is not feasible.
"We're open-minded about this," Heap said. "This is great to hear, but I'm just wondering about the timetable issue."