Should schools be closed for low attendance or economic factors?

By Gordon Garnos

AT ISSUE: Members of the South Dakota Legislature are expected next year to open the door again for more school consolidations. A task force recommended that schools with less than 200 students should be forced to consolidate with another school or close its doors. The Legislature bounced this around quite a bit, but finally settled on the magic number of 100 students are needed to keep a school open. Prior to this legislation, a school's future was primarily based on economic factors, whether or not a school district could get a tax limit opt out passed by the voters. (Full Article)