By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette
On Dec. 2, the Adair-Casey and Guthrie Center school boards met jointly for a work session to discuss proposed consolidation of the two districts into one.
Superintendent Josh Rasmussen said he had consulted with Ahlers & Cooney (legal counsel for the districts), the Iowa Department of Education, and Heartland AEA for guidance on the process for reorganization of the Adair-Casey and Guthrie Center School Districts. The boards discussed the timeline and the petition that will need to be completed before an official election can be scheduled.
During Rasmussen’s conversation with the Iowa Department of Education, it was discovered that additional funding that had been available to districts for reorganization ended on July 1, 2024. This funding was not extended during the 2024 legislation session and is no longer available. Board members agreed that both districts need to contact local legislators to urge them to renew this funding during the 2025 session.
The boards also discussed how many board members should be on the new board of directors for the consolidated district, if and when consolidation happens. Currently, each board has five members. No final decision was made.
The boards plan to continue the discussions during future board meetings. The next board meetings will be on Wednesday, Dec. 18 and will include the annual organizational meeting for each board. The Adair-Casey meeting will be at 5:30 p.m., and the Guthrie Center meeting will follow at 7 p.m. Both will be at the Adair Junior High. The public is welcome.