Rossford to close elementary school in 2014
2/6/2013The Rossford schools will be closing an elementary school at the end of the 2013-14 academic year.
The Board of Education approved shuttering Indian Hills Elementary at a special meeting Tuesday and transferring students in prekindergarten through grade two to Glenwood Elementary, students in grades three to five to Eagle Point Elementary, and sixth graders to the junior high.
The school board has been mulling a grade reconfiguration, which is known as "grade clustering" in the district, for years.
The change is intended to cut costs and improve academic performance by having all of the teachers in one grade located in a single building for better collaboration.
This is a busy time for Rossford school officials.
The district is looking for a new superintendent and interviewing candidates and it is in the process of deciding what to do about its aging buildings.
An architectural-engineering firm has determined that Rossford's buildings are structurally sound but out of date and in need of significant upgrades.
Bringing the high school alone up to contemporary standards would cost $18 million over the next 10 years, and at least $20 million more would be needed to modernize all of the district's facilities in that period.
A citizens committee has been studying the possibilities and coming up with options, which include new construction, renovations, or a combination of the two.