Consolidation 2026 and beyond

[Rebel Bert]

Baldwyn and Booneville School Districts are working on a merger plan. The schools will remain open.

[Bulldogs4]

I look for many school districts to be consolidated going forward. Not necessarily closing very many actual schools but there is so much flab in every School District Office that eventually the taxpayers are going to revolt and force the legislature to combine districts. There should be one per county. 82 total. There are currently 138. That is way too many.

Money or the lack of will demand that this happen in the years ahead. 

[Rebel Bert]

41 minutes ago, Bulldogs4 said:

I look for many school districts to be consolidated going forward. Not necessarily closing very many actual schools but there is so much flab in every School District Office that eventually the taxpayers are going to revolt and force the legislature to combine districts. There should be one per county. 82 total. There are currently 138. That is way too many.

Money or the lack of will demand that this happen in the years ahead. 

Agree

[MSSportsGuy]

This is a good, proactive move by the districts. 

 

Baldwyn, Nettleton, and Union are small districts spread across two counties as their towns are on the lines. Lumberton was as well years ago had a forced consolidation with Lamar County Schools. I think the students who were zoned for Lumberton but lived in Pearl River County were allowed to continue at Lumberton and did not move to PRC but I'm not 100% sure.

 

Along with my many posts about the stupidity of 7 classes, I've been just as vocal about the need for district consolidation. There should be many more. District consolidation does not have to lead to local school closures just reduced administration and fewer school boards and taxation variances. Does it save a ton of money? Not necessarily that much in the big picture, but in a time of declining school enrollments and lack of adequate funds, this is mostly a good thing.

 

I'd love to see more voluntarily make the move but it will likely be a fight in most communities. 

[pancho]

I'm told that due to some schools being classified as minority districts that they can't be forced to consolidate with another school.  Is this true?

[maroontide06]

2 hours ago, MSSportsGuy said:

This is a good, proactive move by the districts. 

 

Baldwyn, Nettleton, and Union are small districts spread across two counties as their towns are on the lines. Lumberton was as well years ago had a forced consolidation with Lamar County Schools. I think the students who were zoned for Lumberton but lived in Pearl River County were allowed to continue at Lumberton and did not move to PRC but I'm not 100% sure.

 

Along with my many posts about the stupidity of 7 classes, I've been just as vocal about the need for district consolidation. There should be many more. District consolidation does not have to lead to local school closures just reduced administration and fewer school boards and taxation variances. Does it save a ton of money? Not necessarily that much in the big picture, but in a time of declining school enrollments and lack of adequate funds, this is mostly a good thing.

 

I'd love to see more voluntarily make the move but it will likely be a fight in most communities. 

Lumberton got absorbed into the Lamar County School District, so the kids that live in the North part of Pearl River County fall within the Lamar County School District since it got absorbed.  The issue will arise if they ever close Lumberton because Poplarville School District doesn't want to lose those kids in the Northern part of the county.  They would just want to keep the Pearl River County kids in Pearl River County and the Lamar County kids could go to Purvis.  So to keep things from getting messy, they have to keep Lumberton open.  I honestly think if they ever close Lumberton, everyone that falls within the old Lumberton School District would wind up going to Purvis anyway.  That's a battle that I don't think Pearl River County would win.

[Rebel Bert]

6 hours ago, pancho said:

I'm told that due to some schools being classified as minority districts that they can't be forced to consolidate with another school.  Is this true?

You might need study up on the 1968 Desegrigation Act. My thinking is that you forced it back then why not now. Then again I am not sure all counties or districts  come under that situation. 

[pancho]

Someone mentioned that over lunch last week and he was specifically talking about why Blue Mountain would never merge with Ripley. Tippah county must still have open districting as far as where a student resides because they have kids in high school who have never attended the actual school in which district they reside. 

[Rebel Bert]

2 hours ago, pancho said:

Someone mentioned that over lunch last week and he was specifically talking about why Blue Mountain would never merge with Ripley. Tippah county must still have open districting as far as where a student resides because they have kids in high school who have never attended the actual school in which district they reside. 

3 school districts in the county. I am sure there are reasons why Blue Mountain has their own school district then South Tippah,  and North Tippah. Blue Mountain doesn't play football so I wouldn't blame a young man going to Ripley or elsewhere to play.

[pancho]

I hear you on that but there are literally kids living at pine grove who have only attended ripley and vise versa all over the whole county.  nothing to do with just football.

[Rebel Bert]

53 minutes ago, pancho said:

I hear you on that but there are literally kids living at pine grove who have only attended ripley and vise versa all over the whole county.  nothing to do with just football.

Goes back to the superintendent,  board, whatever the job title is that is in charge of enrollment for each district. My guess is in rural Mississippi and Smith County for example I am sure Raleigh students have Forest(NE part), Pulaski(N Central part), Morton, Magee(NWpart), Raleigh, Bay Springs (E) zip codes deliver mail within the county and the kids go to Raleigh. So yes I can see where Tippah kids attend one school but zip code may be Blue Mountain,  Ripley, Faulkner,  or Walnut and they attend a different schools. The schools know it and don't investigate it. They should also know that certain road names or numbers don't fit their zone and investigate. They also know like Union County boys want to play football and leave West Union area to go play football at East Union same as leaving Pine Ridge/Blue Mountain to play at Ripley. If the school board allows it then what does anyone else say.

[MSSportsGuy]

I grew up next to Tippah County and have relatives/friends and such who have attended all of the schools at some point in their lives. I will try and break down a little of the "weirdness" of the place to educate/inform. It doesn't exactly make sense but this is how they operate. The county currently has two districts: North and South Tippah.

 

South Tippah School District 

Blue Mountain and Pine Grove (K12)

Ripley Elementary, Middle, and High schools

 

Ripley is the county seat and has always been by far the largest in the county. It offers football and band. The district allows students to attend any school in the district they wish no matter their address. There are zones in name only but are not enforced or even well known. Blue Mountain demographics have generally been small majority African American/Hispanic and lower income white kids frequently without the means to fund transporation to another school. The school has long been the smallest in terms of enrollment and the chorus of close them has been around for 40 years. The problems are 1. The county's desegregation suit supervision would require federal approval and 2. Ripley, where many of them would go, didn't want them because it would alter their own demographics. Pine Grove is only white students and now picks up students who live closer to Ripley or in the city limits but would rather go to a small school (code words for no minority kids). Ripley's demographics are now almost evenly split between white/black/Hispanic which is a huge shift from the late 80s and early 90s when I was young. 

 

Bottom line is there won't be any consolidation there unless forced to because of the social and demographic implications. Pine Grove would start an academy about five minutes after any consolidation vote or talk. 

 

North Tippah School District (as of today)

Falkner Elementary and High

Walnut Attendance Center (K12)

Chalybeate Elementary (K8)

 

Chalybeate students attended Walnut starting in 9th grade. LIke South Tippah there are no real zones or enforced lines. The district is much smaller than South Tippah and has almost no tax base or industry. The board voted 3 years ago to merge Walnut and Falkner's upper grades to be housed on Walnut's campus and called North Tippah High. It will only house grades 6-12. Chalybeate will now be K-5 and get former WAC students in those grades as well as their current ones. Falkner Elementary is untouched for now. This has almost caused a civil war as the Falkner families, understandably disappointed, are furious their students will now attend "Walnut" despite a different name, mascot, colors, and the district has renovated both Walnut and Chalybeate campuses to house the new students and changes. Many Falkner families have opted to leave for South Tippah (Ripley or PG), Alcorn County, or homeschooling. Academically and demographically the schools are very similar but North Tippah High will likely be little more than a handful of the FHS families who join the former Walnut students due to the outrage. 

 

All the schools in the county are decent academically and socially. Still, ideally there would be two high schools for the county, South and North, and they would be a single school district rather than two.