Save Our Independent School Districts consolidation Q&A

Verde Independent: County School Superintendent Tim Carter’s office concluded that a successful school district consolidation would result in minimal savings to taxpayers in both the Clarkdale-Jerome District and the new unified district. Do you agree with that determination? Do those savings in and of themselves warrant a consolidation of the Cottonwood-Oak Creek and Mingus Union districts?

SOISD: I don’t believe that minimal tax decreases are a basis for hitting the self-destruct button. I would suggest that the ultimate question each voter must answer is whether consolidation is probably better for the students of all three districts. While fiscal integrity is important in any school district, the insignificant savings estimated by Superintendent Carter don’t, by themselves, lead to any benefit for the students. The minimal change in taxes should not be a factor in determining how to vote on this issue.

VI: What are the long-term tax implications for residents in the current Clarkdale-Jerome and Cottonwood-Oak Creek districts if consolidation occurs? What does it mean for the future of override and bond elections?

SOISD: A new statement from the superintendent’s office shows a primary tax levy increase in CJSD of over a million dollars. When that is held against the minimal tax decreases estimated by Tim Carter’s office, the future of Clarkdale-Jerome’s tax situation is anything but clear. Regarding future overrides and bond elections, it’s scary. Not only does the consolidation reduce the bond and override capacity of the new district, but it also removes the residents of Clarkdale Jerome from voting. This is important because these residents have been very supportive of the high school’s bonds and overrides over the past 50 years.

VI: How would consolidation impact the bonding capacity of the new unified district vs. the two existing districts? Do you view this as a positive or negative consequence of consolidation? Please explain. 

SOISD: It reduces the bonding capacity of the new district. By removing Clarkdale-Jerome and its properties (including the cement plant) the new bonding capacity is lower than that of the two existing districts. While neither district has maxed out its current bonding capacity, I feel that having this flexibility gives local communities a greater control over their local educational agencies. A reduced bond capacity hampers the community’s ability to throw a lifeline to its schools in the event of economic difficulties, and this, in my opinion, is most definitely a bad thing.

VI: It has frequently been noted that our situation with three school districts, two of which govern one school each, is unique in that the Verde Valley is surrounded by unified districts in Flagstaff, Sedona, Camp Verde, Prescott Valley, Prescott and Chino Valley. Should we aspire to be like these other communities when it comes to school district structure? Why? Why not?

SOISD: No. Study after study has shown that smaller districts have students that perform better academically than larger districts. In the most recent Auditor General report, Mingus outperformed its peer group academically, while maintaining a lower admin-to-student ratio than any of the listed K-12 districts. I think that having smaller districts allows the staff and administration to react quickly to student needs without excessive administration delay. Without proof and factual support showing student benefit, changing how we do things simply because that’s what other people do is change for changes sake. Our students deserve not to have their future gambled with.

VI: At the direction of the 2018 Consolidation Advisory Committee, the directors of finance for both districts prepared a cost analysis that focused almost exclusively on salaries and the elimination of potential personnel redundancies.  Are there other areas of cost and revenue that should be considered with consolidation? 

SOISD: This report also looked at other areas of cost and savings. The data presented to the committee showed that the new district could face a deficit of over half a million dollars on day one. I think districts should constantly be looking at ways to improve efficiency, and a comprehensive plan for consolidation should look at all possible financial implications of consolidation. The time to examine these impacts was years ago, not in the weeks leading into a vote. Voters deserve time to analyze and examine any such a plan, not just hope that things work out.

VI: If there is a cost savings to property taxpayers through consolidation, does it follow that the new unified district would be able to operate in a more economical manner than the two currently existing school districts? Would it result in reduced administrative and operational savings? 

SOISD: As pointed out in Mr. Westcott’s recent commentary, consolidations have not been shown to result in administrative or operational savings. Truthfully, the opposite is frequently true. Frankly, this makes sense. Everyone working in the administrative offices of these districts currently works their fingers to the bone. It is foolish to think that we could simply replace two people working full time with a single employee. The inability to realize these savings actually resulted in the 2010 Auditors General Performance Review of COCSD containing a warning not to use these potential savings as the basis for consolidation. Not much has changed.

VI: Claims have been made that a successful school district consolidation would allow for an equalization of K-12 teacher salaries and benefits. Should elementary teachers receive the same compensation as high school teachers? 

SOISD: Absolutely. Teachers across the state are overworked and underpaid. However, the claims that consolidation will save the hundreds of thousands necessary to equalize salaries have been repeatedly debunked, including by the joint report of both districts’ financial managers. The only models shown have required a freezing or reduction in the salaries of high school teachers. In a state with a massive teacher shortage (over 2000 open teaching jobs) reducing or freezing salaries could bring that teacher shortage home. We need to focus on hiring on retaining quality teachers, not alienating them.

VI: Claims have been made that a consolidation of the Cottonwood-Oak Creek and Mingus Union districts would result in a better coordination of school calendars. Is that a legitimate concern? Are school calendars among the local districts disjointed?

SOISD: Honestly, no. All three districts work closely to make sure that the calendars are nearly identical. The administrators of these districts realize how disjointed calendars can affect families and put the work in to make sure that this doesn’t happen. This act of working together on calendars has been successfully implemented over the past several years.

VI: Claims have been made that a consolidation of the Cottonwood-Oak Creek and Mingus Union districts would result in improved curriculum alignment and student achievement? What is currently lacking in the curriculum alignment of the two school districts? Is it fair to claim consolidation will result in improved student achievement? Please explain?

SOISD: What is currently lacking? Nothing. It is important to note that while there are many claims of improved alignment, there is no claim of a problem with the current curriculum. If all the schools are adhering to the state standards then alignment happens automatically. As to student achievement, there is absolutely no evidence that consolidation will result in any improvement. In fact, all studies I’ve seen show that consolidation has the opposite effect. These are all just promises being made without any sort of factual support. Claiming improved student achievement borders somewhere between hopeful ignorance and a flat out lie.

VI: Voters rejected a consolidation of the Clarkdale-Jerome, Mingus Union and Cottonwood-Oak Creek districts in 1998. They also rejected a state-ordered election in 2008 to consolidate the Mingus Union and Cottonwood-Oak Creek districts. Now, 12 years later, what has changed that justifies the merger of these two school districts?

SOISD: Nothing

VI: Claims have been made that a consolidation of the Cottonwood-Oak Creek and Mingus Union districts would result in an articulated K-12 curriculum? What is currently lacking in the progressive education plan of the two school districts?

SOISD: In my opinion, nothing. However, voters need to keep in mind that this affects three separate districts. We need to look at how this will impact kids not just from COCSD but from CJSD as well. How can we say this is “For the Kids” if its not for all the kids. Treating Mingus as Cottonwood’s property and not the Union High School of the entire area is antithetical to what it means to be an educator. The complete lack of interest in how this will effect the students from CJSD is just another reason to vote no.

VI: Please explain your understanding of the 2018 lawsuit initiated by the Mingus district that, in effect, canceled the 2018 consolidation election? Was that lawsuit necessary? Were the voters of the two districts best served by this legal intervention?

SOISD: My understanding was that the lawsuit challenged the legality of the petition language, the manner in which signatures were acquired, and the constitutionality of the changes in the law made at the behest of the consolidation group. I do believe this was necessary as it gave the voters of all three districts to vote on a clean, understandable petition. In fact, the Court found the petitions invalid and ordered the rewriting of the same. I think that the Court’s ruling on the lack of the petition’s validity, in and of itself, shows the necessity of the 2018 lawsuit.

VI: With consolidation, the Clarkdale-Jerome District would pay tuition to the new unified district for its students to attend high school at Mingus. Is this a burden to the Clarkdale-Jerome School District or its taxpayers?

SOISD: Consolidation will place strain on the CJSD office, forcing it to track several new calculations, tuitions, and tax dispersals. Psychologically, it could make the entire community feel unwanted and viewed as outsiders. Mingus is a Union High School, it is meant to build the sense of community. Kicking these residents out of the new district, prohibiting them from voting on its governance will have the opposite effect, dividing and separating, not bringing the community closer together.

VI: Would consolidation create new opportunities for Clarkdale-Jerome, such as unifying within their own district, phasing in a traditional high school over four years, working with the CSS to open a satellite campus of the Accommodation School District in CJ, or create a joint CTE high school with VACTE, or use dual credit options using the community college, or partner with the Apache Nation, or create an online high school, or partner with a charter high school? Are any of those scenarios realistic opportunities for the Clarkdale-Jerome District should consolidation be successful?

SOISD: I think all of these opportunities are available regardless of consolidation. I personally think that the fact that this plan kicks the entire Clarkdale Jerome community, the community which originally founded Mingus, out of the district as extremely distasteful. Ultimately, the resident of CJSD will do what they think is in the best interests of their children. I truly believe that that means keeping Mingus alive as a Union High School and voting down this consolidation which could have a devastating impact on our community’s educational opportunities.

VI: Are there negative consequences to the Clarkdale-Jerome District if Mingus and Cottonwood-Oak Creek were consolidated into a new district? Are there positive consequences to the Clarkdale-Jerome District if Mingus and Cottonwood-Oak Creek were consolidated into a new district?

SOISD: This consolidation plan disenfranchises the entire CJSD community. By removing CJSD, it sets up the expectation that they would continue to send their kids and tax dollars to the new districts high school while giving up their ability to participate in its governance through voting or serving on the board. It takes CJSD residents for granted and prevents them from supporting the district through bonds and overrides. I can think of no positive consequences from excising such a historically supportive community.

VI: Would the Verde Valley be better served by having one five-member school board vs. the current system of 10 school board members, five for each district?

SOISD: In my opinion no. The current Mingus Board has the ability to draw from both COCSD and CJSD bases. Currently three Board members live in the CJSD. More voices bring more ideas, more innovation. In a Facebook video, the Pro-Consolidation Group cites better political representation as a benefit of consolidation. Again, I think that kicking out the community which currently has supplied 60% of the Mingus Board is antithetical to “better political representation.” Inclusiveness is better than exclusion.

VI: Would consolidation provide efficiencies to student transportation? Should there be separate school bus fleets for each of the two school districts?

SOISD: No. In fact, consolidation would likely reduce the new district’s transportation budget. This can be seen from the 2018 report from both district’s financial advisors. Any claim regarding transportation savings has been completely devoid of any factual support, as are all claims of savings and efficiencies made by the pro consolidation group. As to the fleet question, in such a small community it is crucial to have separate fleets, thereby allowing both schools to operate at different times. Eliminating a fleet could cause a logistical nightmare, making parents life more difficult, not easier.

VI: Does consolidation pose a threat to the athletic and other extra-curricular programs of the two school districts?

SOISD: Yes. The answer is two fold. First, the evidence, studies, and historical precedence show that a consolidated district will likely be operating on a smaller budget than the three districts separately. Any reductions in funding pose a risk to extra curricular activities. Simply saying that such reductions won’t happen isn’t enough. There is no theoretical plan, or mock budget which shows that these programs are safe. A reduction in talent is also concerning as many of our athletes and extra curricular participants come from CJSD, and there is no guarantee that those students will continue to attend the new district’s high school.

VI: Does consolidation pose a threat to school programs such as art, music and theater?

SOISD: Absolutely. Despite the pro consolidations best effort to nay say such arguments, they still have yet to supply a single study or historical example of how similarly situated districts saved money. The facts suggest that a new district would be operating at a significant budget deficit over the current three districts’ budgets. This will likely lead to a need for cuts to programs and possibly even staff. When cuts are made, they aren’t made to core subjects or CTE funded through VACTE, rather they will likely come, as they always do, to the arts, music, and theater.

Save Our Independent School Districts PAC is a committee chaired by David Grey with Stephen Renard as its treasurer. It was formed to give a unified voice to the diverse portions of the Verde Valley population which believe that the current consolidation plan poses a serious threat to the educational future of all of the affected students, those in the Cottonwood Oak Creek District as well as those served by the Clarkdale Jerome School District.