Opinion ID: 1910318
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: temporary injunction hearing

Text: At the temporary injunction hearing, Forsberg testified that the school district had lost about $580,000 in state aid since 1999. He also stated that the Decatur school had experienced a larger drop in enrollment than the Lyons school. He stated that 3 or 4 years before, the board began eliminating some positions and hours at Lyons. It also began combining some grades at Decatur. Having few cost-saving options left, the board decided to move Decatur's grades four through six to Lyons. He stated that the Coalition's members were present at school board meetings when the board discussed cutting costs and that the Coalition's attorney addressed the board on these topics. At the hearing, Forsberg presented a summary from school census reports which showed the Decatur school had considerably fewer students than Lyons. In Decatur, 36 students were then enrolled in grades kindergarten through six, and he projected Decatur would have 17 students in grades kindergarten through three the next year. In contrast, Lyons had 111 students enrolled in grades kindergarten through six, and he projected Lyons would have 52 students in grades kindergarten through three the next year. Forsberg testified that moving grades four through six from Decatur to Lyons would save the school district more than $200,000. Forsberg stated that beginning with the 2004-05 school year, the school district bussed all students under grade seven in special education from Decatur to Lyons. Lyons and Decatur are 15 miles apart, and the commute time for students by bus is 25 to 30 minutes. After the hearing, the district court determined that the Coalition had failed to establish a clear right to relief and denied its request for a temporary injunction.