Small school districts start to wring their hands. Past Columns Consolidation is on the minds of many patrons and educators throughout Nebraska this spring, often whispered in hushed tones and held lowly as the harbinger of death for small communities. Thoughts of high taxes and lost identities run rampant. For small districts saddled with dwindling populations, lid laws and financial requirements, making the numbers add up is a rough ride. Still, many have resisted the economic urge to throw in with others.
Truth is, done right, most mergers work quite well.
Anyone who wonders otherwise should head north from Cairo on Highway 11 to the Centura school district, poster child for good consolidation. We have technology, an avant-garde curriculum, and I don't have to deal with guns in my school. I'm not going to say we don't have any problems, but it's not on my calendar every day. In school, it doesn't matter. There's a togetherness here that is great to be part of.