Could an endowment save Old Mission Peninsula School?

It's just one of numerous ideas being explored by the Old Mission Peninsula Task Force, a group of school parents and concerned peninsula residents tasking itself with finding a solution to avoid closure of its elementary school. The school also houses the Peninsula Community Library.

Peninsula residents admit they were disillusioned following a recent Traverse City Area Public Schools (TCAPS) board retreat in which focus groups from Old Mission – along with Interlochen Community School and the International School at Bertha Vos – presented their top options for ways to avoid closure due to low enrollment and high overhead. Those options included a marketing campaign to increase enrollment, relocating a special educational program (such as the Talented and Gifted program) to Old Mission, or redistricting to equalize enrollment.

TCAPS leaders say closing a building will save roughly $325,000 to $400,000 in annual overhead costs to maintain buildings with less than 200 students.

Superintendent Paul Soma has said he is “open to creative options” that might be put forward by each of the low enrollment schools.

Of the endowment idea to fund Old Mission's annual overhead costs, Soma says, "sustainability would be my biggest worry."

The community task force says its goal it to “reframe the debate” so that the closure discussion is not about money, but rather the quality of education at the high-achieving school, which was also renovated in 2004. “We have a beautiful building,” the group says. “It doesn’t need anything.”

Other ideas include capitalizing on its location in an agricultural setting to make it a center for STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education or to extend programming through the eighth grade.

The task force plans to meet again the first part of January.

TCAPS Superintendent Paul Soma will give his recommendations regarding school closures at the board’s Jan. 25 meeting. A final decision isn’t expected until early March.

In other TCAPS activity as 2015 wraps up:

Teacher Contract Extended
The school district and the Traverse City Education Association (TCEA) have agreed to a one-year extension of the existing three-year teacher contract. The agreement is for the period September 1, 2016 through August 31, 2017.

In a memo from Chris Davis, executive director of human resources & labor relations for TCAPS, the agreement calls for teachers to receive a one percent salary increase for the 2016-17 school year with movement on salary steps. The agreement also calls for the district to continue to split any insurance premium increases.

Allyson McBride-Culver, president of the Traverse City Education Association, says both sides met a handful of times and were in agreement about pursuing only a one-year extension.

"That is what fit our members best at this time and also fit what the district is looking at," says McBride-Culver, adding that she was very encouraged by the nature of the negotiations.

"The process was great," she says. "We have a superintendent who is out in the buildings, understands what teachers are up against and knows what an extremely challenging job it is, especially with the climate at the state level."

The TCEA represents the district’s approximately 540 teachers, social workers and counselors. McBride-Culver says union representatives and TCAPS officials will begin negotiations on a 2017-18 contract at this time next year.

Face-To-Face Meeting With ISD
The next step for the district’s ongoing disagreement over the fund balance being maintained by the Traverse Bay Intermediate School District (TBAISD) is a letter from the TCAPS board asking to sit down with their counterparts at the ISD.

“After many years of trying to work collaboratively with TBAISD to find reasonable solutions that are in the best interest of all of the students of our region, as the TCAPS Board of Education, we feel we must take action to raise awareness within your board and the community about our ongoing philosophical issues with the TBAISD fund balance,” the letter states.

The board argues that "maintaining a 'healthy' financial position is critial for any organization," but that it needs to be balanced with being a responsible steward of taxpayer funds. "TBAISD currently has a combined fund balance in excess of 50%, well above the level necessary to provide financial protection for an organization," the letter continues.

The TCAPS board is asking for a response to its meeting request by Fri., Jan. 8.