The Argus has an article on the Brookings School District’s accreditation debacle with some interesting points on how serious the issue of accreditation is.
Despite one school board member calling it sensationalized, there was a lot more to it than that. It is so serious that the district could have been dissolved, and the school lands subject to reassignment:
A public school district that has not regained its state-accredited status will become ineligible to receive state aid to education at the beginning of the next school fiscal year on July 1, according to state law.
If the Secretary of Education determines there’s no plan of action, they must alert county commissioners that the district is subject to loss of authority and the lands are subject to reassignment, according to state law.
In other words, if the Brookings School District and board hadn’t come up with a plan of action as they did by Monday night, the schools could’ve lost state aid, the city would’ve lost its public schools and the public schools would’ve become something else.
I knew they’d lose state aid to education, but what they could have been facing could have been so much worse, had we kept down this path.
It’s shocking to think the Brookings School District was on track for being turned over to the County Commission and faced being dissolved, and the schools being reassigned.
One of the (formerly) top school districts in the state being dissolved and carved up among Deubrook, Sioux Valley and the Flandreau School Districts?
It might be far-fetched, but this is way more serious than has been downplayed by school leadership.
the real estate would be reassigned? to whom? A private academy? Is somebody contemplating a takeover of the schools? This sounds more like a bluff than a threat. What would the DOE do if the school board said “go ahead, make our day?”
What if they announce “we’re going to homeschool EVERYBODY?”
The reality of graduating from a unaccredited school is that you sit for the GED exam. If the entire enrollment of the Brookings school district becomes homeschooled, it will probably produce the most outstanding scholars in the state. This will make for a Great Experiment in Education, won’t it?
It would likely be reassigned to surrounding school districts.. but that scenario is unlikely, as I would presume they’re getting their act together.
It’s a wakeup call to the board that if they want a good school system, they need to hire a competent administrator, and not just a ribbon cutter.
how does the preeminent teacher mill in the state, sdsu, have this happen in their back yard? if some pretty intentional and corrective partnerships can’t be formed immediately, why bother? it’s on you. all of you.
The preeminent teacher mill?
LOL
Ya, like a puppy mill. They did produce the likes of cory heidelberger.
name the school that has more pervasive influence on the course of education in this state. or SHOULD have as it were.
This guy was a buffoon. Accreditation was the least of our problems. Two school board members signed off on a contract for him that was from his lawyer, not the school district’s. (One is now a state representative.) Who signs something without looking at it first????? Action should have been taken a lot sooner than the accreditation issue. We wouldn’t have been in this position had they terminated him sooner. Look at the laundry list of infractions prior to the accreditation issue. I’m sad for the principals and teachers of the district because people automatically assume they are doing their job. As a former teacher and SDSU alum, those of you who think we are like a puppy mill ought to come and take the courses. We produce great teachers.
Should have said people assume the teachers aren’t doing their job.