Clearwater Offers Formula To Help Determine Site Location

​After about a year of discussing future site locations, the Clearwater and Orchard Advisory Boards may be again working to solve the root of their issues - the language on what significant change is. 

The schools appeared to be at a standstill after a motion was made in February by the Orchard  Board to either reach a site location agreement by May or dissolve the interlocal agreement.

Last week the Original Orchard Board, made up of the four advisory members and the two unified members, released to The Orchard News their account of how discussion has proceeded. That came after consecutive weeks of Letters to the Editor regarding site location.

On Monday night, Clearwater Advisory Board President Amy Thiele read a response from her board to that submitted article in The Orchard News. Thiele followed it with a proposed formula on criteria for determining change. 

“It’s putting definitive terms” on what significant change is, Thiele said.

The Orchard board members, who had not seen the formula until the meeting, asked several questions before stating they needed time to review the proposal before responding. 

Regina Krebs of Clearwater called the formula a starting point and encouraged the Orchard members to offer suggestions on how to improve what Clearwater proposed.

The formula calls for location be “based on percentage of students that are enrolled from each of the original districts over a three-year period.”

In order to have the high school in a community, the district must have at least 50.1 percent of the students in their district two of three grade groups (8-11, 7-10 or 6-9) as of the third Monday in January.

The numbers would not include students who optioned into the district. For example, a student in the Neligh-Oakdale district would not count toward Clearwater’s percentage of students.

Kristi Schutt of Orchard suggested finding a way to incorporate tax valuations in the formula since that has been a concern for some Orchard stakeholders. 

Krebs said everything was on the table at his point in regard to the formula.

Clearwater members raised concerns regarding three Orchard members having attended a Unified board meeting last month, suggesting a quorum took place. However, Superintendent Dale Martin said he was not aware of any misconduct at that publicly advertised meeting. 

Martin said at the Unified meeting, Orchard Board President Candice Hoke spoke by herself during public participation and asked the Unified board   to be aware of the Clearwater-Orchard situation should those overseeing members be called upon to decide how to solve the disagreement. 

Duane Kester of Clearwater asked if that was a fair request of someone living in Verdigre, and Martin said it was within their realm of responsibility as Unified board members.

The Unified board will meet in Clearwater on Monday, March 21, at 7 p.m.
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Also at the meeting, the board heard resignation letters submitted by several teachers from Clearwater-Orchard. That information can be found on Page 4, as well as information regarding the approval of a new HVAC system for Orchard.

The Advisory boards went into executive session in regard to extra-curricular assignments. No decision was made on duties.
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The 2016-17 School year calendar was approved. Classes will begin on Tuesday, August 16, 2016 and run until May 19, 2017. Christmas break will be from December 22 through January 4. Graduation for Clearwater-Orchard will be on Saturday, May 6, at 4 pm in Clearwater and Verdigre High School on Saturday, May 6, at 1 p.m.