THEA'PPIL‘ORNEY GENXZRAL 

OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 11. -AS 

March 12, 1963 

Honorable J. W. Edgar Opinion No. C-35 

Commissioner of Education 

Austin, Texas Re: Can either a single or a 

consolidated common school 

district be converted into 

a rural high school district 

under Articles 2922a-2922c, 

Vernon's Civil Statutes, or 

Dear Dr. Edgar: any other school law? 

You have written asking if a County School Board, under' 

the authority of Articles 2922a-2922c, Vernon's Civil Statutes, 

or any other school law, may convert either a single or a consolidated common school district Into a rural high school district. c 

\ 

The relevant portions of Article 2922a provide: 

"In each organized county in this estate, 

and In any county which shall hereafter be organized, the county school trustees shall have 

the authority to form one'or more rural~high 

school districts, b --yz2?&st~~~"~~~;u;~~~ school districts hav ng 

(400) scholastic population and independent school 

districts having lessthan two hundred fifty (250) 

scholastic population, for the purpose of establlshing and operating rural high schools; provided, 

also, that the county school trustees may annex 

one or more common school districts or one or more 

independent school districts having less than two 

hundred fifty (250) scholastic population to a common school district having four hundred (400) or 

more scholastic population, or to an Independent 

district having two hundred fifty (250) or more 

scholastic population, . . .' (Emphasis ours). 

Article 2922c reads as follows: 

"No rural high school district, as provided for herein, shall contain a greater 

area than one hundred square miles, or more 

than ten elementary school districts, except 

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Hon. J. W. Edgar, page 2 (C-35) 

that the county school board of school 

trustees may formrural high scnool alstricts, as provided in Article 2922a, con-' 

taining more than one hundred square miles, 

upon a vote of a majority of the qualified 

electors in the said proposed rural high 

school dlstrict~ voting at an election called 

for such purpose; and provided further/that 

the said board of county school trustees may 

form a rural high school district containing 

more than ten elementary districts upon a'vote 

of a majority of the~qualified voters in each 

of the elementarydistricts within such proposed rural high school district." 

The leading case construing these statutes is State v. 

School Trustees of Shelby County, 150 Tex. 238, 239 S.W 26 

(7 (lY!dJ . It construes Article 2922a to provide two methods 

of strengthening and Improving rural schools: 

(1) creation,,of rural high school districts 

through grouping" and 

(2) strengthening existing common and independent districts through annexation. 

In construing Article 2922c, the Court held: 

"This article does not purport to confer 

on boards of county school trustees the power 

to create rural high school districts. It is 

but a limitation on the power conferred under 

the first part of Article 2922a, with exceptions 

to the limitation. Bell v. Dltmore, Tex.Clv. 

APP., 38 S.W.2d 397." 

Thus, we can find no language within either Article 2922a 

or Article 2922c, which would authorize the County School Board 

to convert a common school district, either single or consolldated, into a rural high school district, 

An examination of the other school laws reveals that 

under Article 27423, Vernon's Civil Statutes, a common school 

district may be converted into an independent school district. 

Similarly, Article 2922L (5), Vernon's Civil Statutes, authorizes the conversion of a rural high school district into an 

independent school district. However, we can find no statute authorizing the conversion of an existing common school district, 

whether single or consolidated, into a rural high school district. 

-1491 
Hon. J. W. Edgar, Page 3 (C-35) 

SUMMARY 

An existing common school district, 

either single or consolidated, cannot be converted into a rural high 

school district. 

Yours very truly, 

WAGGONER CARR 

Attorney General 

By '@- -, . 

Bill Morse, Jr. 

Assistant 

BMjr:mkh:ms 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

W. V. Geppert, Chairman 

Murray Jordan 

Scott Garrisbn 

Samuel Strong Pharr 

Malcolm L. Quick 

APPROVED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

By: Stanton Stone 

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