OFFICE OFTHEATTORNEY GENERAL OFTEXAS / 

QmAcn c. MANN 

A-“” .s*- 

Ronorab,le li. B. Baker 

count]r Mitoxllay 

Folsaan county 

Coleaan, Gmaa 

e minutes or the colema 

c 8, 19JO la 

ting twe alamt3ntary 

hlte Cbapsl of the %nteamial Ron1 

Bo. a oulu up ror ooFmiberatlon. 

regardlw, the lttex rpoa yhrcl, fcmt~inccs, 

uorl, xx, Plexoe, xl-i 3-i. a. lRlxtxl* 

(10 uawU~0t16 belief oi all that mob a 

~ntaplag wowl8 Kreatly laareaoe tbe sfliaLsao~~ oi theft 

OlenmntrrJ~ aobool. So at thr in8tWO6 of the &IJem aad 

White CbaDOl Gchcml Dl8trict aaff with the 001LQUxraMO 

of tho Centannie Bohool. Board, ths xeptlset asking @cmsall?rrt.ionf the two j&mfmtUy 6Ubd.6 iQX the 

easula~ year wan granted.* 
“i’cr the sahool year 1939-40 lt sees8 there 

a:11 be 29 clezsntarp pupils in the Y:hite Chapel 

elementary school dlstrlct. A number or tho patrons 

of this local elementary district Oeslro to have their 

clc%entary school rcestabllehed. The school board doea 

sot xisb t6 do thlh* thereiore 3 would like to bavr. 

your opinion ns to vhether ttlls local board 1s obli&rA 

to reestablish this sohool. Also, would the aountf 

board of &ohool trunteee have any authority in the 

roattcr7” 

k Careful search of the statutes relstln@ to rural high 

schooi Ofstrlctn does not revenl any provision exprearly reQuiring 

that elementary schools rlthin the rural hi@ eohool dlstrlot sntst 

be mastabllshsU after they have beian dlroontlnued.or oonsoll&tod. 

f OlLovm : 

mtiole petri, hevised Clvll statutc8, 1925; provlaer ar 

“The oounty board of school Qwsteas ahall not hare 

the authority to abollch or oonsolldate any elementary 

school district almaay eotabllshei3 axoopt upon ths ooto 

cr a majority or the walliled eleotoro re~lding In suoh 

elemntary Olstrlct; provided that when any mohoolrithin tin elementary alatrlot rtdls to he*? nn l rorags daily 

attendance the preoedin& year of at hlsaet twenty pupil.8 

it may be dlaoontlnued by t&o board or trwteaa of Said 

rural high sohool dlstrlot, and aald dlatrlot mar be oonsolldated by the oounty board at sohool trumteeo nlth 

ame other dlstrlat or dI8trlatr tar elemcntary8ohool 

purposes; provided that it tberc la more than one *mite 

or one aolomd sohool in ,euoh elementary sohool dlstrlot 

the board of trustee8 of the aaid rural high school al*- 

tricts ‘or an independent dlstrlot, as the csee my be, 

rz~y aonsolldate such white or oolorsd .sdhoole or $ho 

elementary district; end provlaed that the board OS trustees 

of a rural high sohocl Oiatrlot stay transfer the pupila 

of one elementary dlatriet to another within the rural 

hl(rb satiooi dlstriot, nben~ the transfer 1s made tram an 

nlencntary aifmm df lower olaerirIoatfon to one of 

hlpber ohseffloation; and provlaea further that the bcmrd 

Or tNStoS8 Of #I rYrtd high 80h001 a;StrfOt riW tXWIrar 

pupils from an elerentary dli%trlOt to any Other elOm8nt6rY 

dlatrict within the rural h&h eohool district UDQII Wplloatlon or tho pamnts or:&uardlan of the said pupils. 
Eon. i . i:. iieher, $3. 

“K~encvcr :Ine :.r more eo.mon cchool dietriots 

are onncsed tc a cozzon mhool district or to an 

5ndepondc:it d?atrIct under the provjsione of tieotion 1, 

euch coumn or Independent district shell maintain 

elemntery oehoole of huoh clssslfIoatIon as the oouuty 

board xay dt+elghate In eaoh Clatriot 80 qnexed, for. the 

wee length or term provided for the schools oi-the 

said covmx; ochooi dlatrlct or lndepandent dlstrlct. 

provided such schools may be dlsooatlnuod by the looal 

board oi truotoes when the average dally attendanoe of 

er:y such eohoola for the preceding year is lee8 than 

twenty.” 

You do not state in .your letter that the board of trustees 

of the rural hlph ochool district evsr dlscontlnued the White Chapel 

alemmtary nchool dirtrlct abut we armme suah Is the ease slnoe 

the order of the oouuty board reoites that the purported ooneolldation was kith the cohourrenoe of the rural high mhool board. Tou 

~111 note that krtlule 2929t plaoea the authority to dlroontlnuo 

an elementary school In the board of truataea or the rural hlgb 

sohool distrlot and not Iu the oounty board of sahool trueteao. 

Tbe oountq board of school trustees Ia authorlaed to consolidata 

euoh elemntary dIetrIots under uertoln oonditlons r:lth another 

district for clomontary school purposea, but In this commotion wa 

call your attention to the order entsred by the Colman County 

imbool Eoard which doe8 not purport to ‘aonsolldate the two olamentary eoboole exoept *‘top the enauin& vear.a 

In Chastein v. kauldlaa (T. C. A. 1Osb) 32 S. :;. (2d) 

2tJ5, the court tacitly approved an agreenient that an elementary 

school would be keeatabllahed or resumed wider oertaln conditIonS, 

however, in that aa6e tho average attendance during the last 

preoeding sess!on wag as mch or more than twenty elcmental?y pupIla. 

5.0 cell t&is to your attention lnaemuch aa it Is possible that 8oxv.e 

euch aCroe=ent mleht have been made with retcrence to the &bite 

Chapel elementary sahool in view of the wording or the mlnutell Or 

the oounty sehoo 1 board. 

i‘be power of the board oi trusteea of the rural distrlat 

to dlsaontinue an elementary sohool Is not. .depenbent upon,the possibility of ho% meny elementary pupila there will be In the sohool 

dietriot for the current year but it Is provided that *when any 

sohool rlthin my slomantary district Sails to have an avera&e 

dally attendanoe the preosdlng yoar of at lea& twenty pupils It IMP 

disoontinucd by the board of trustees of aa%Q rural high oohool 

d:striot.” 
Eon. VI. B. Baker, #4. 

Based upon the faota a8 subialtted by you, It la our 

opinion thet the local board of the rural high school district 

le not required to reestablish the Yhlte Chapel Elementary 

Gohool Xstrlct for the sohool year 1939-40. 

We are further of the opinion that the county board of 

aohool trustee8 1s not authorized to reestablieh an elementary 

aoh within a rural high SObOo di8trlat where the board of 

t-tees of said rural high school dftirlot ha6 dleoontinued 

suoh elementary eohool ae provided by law. 

Yours very truly 

ATTORIJEY OgNgRbL OF ‘IgXAB 

Aaaistant