School board votes to close Harlan Elementary

The school board voted 6 to 1 tonight to close Harlan Elementary School and move its 78 second graders to Wings Park Elementary.

Closing Harlan, which will save about $70,000 a year, is part of a district plan to cut more than $700,000 in order to balance next year's budget.

Board member Dana Bostian, who cast the lone “no” vote, said she thinks the closure of Harlan will cause student crowding at Wings Park next year.

Board member Charlene Stocker said the move is intended to save money rather than advance student achievement. “We're in a severe financial crisis, and keeping Harlan open doesn't make sense now,” she said.

Board President Candace King, who has a son in second grade at Harlan, said it's important to focus on district rather than personal needs. “We have great second grade teachers who will make this work,” she said.

Wings Park, attended by students in third through fifth grades, “has enough room to handle the second graders and room to grow if we need to,” Superintendent Jim Patera said during the board's Feb. 11 meeting.

Declining enrollment - the district has lost 300 students in the past nine years - and the 10 percent across-the-board cut in state funding have put the Oelwein district, like many others, in a serious financial bind, Patera said.

Most of the savings required to balance the district's budget will be realized through job cuts.