CENTERVILLE, IOWA -- Two Heartland schools are facing the possibility of being closed for good. In mid February, the Centerville School District began looking at ways to balance its budget and cut costs. One of the ideas included the possibility of closing Cincinnati and Mystic Elementary Schools.
If these two schools close, pre-Kindergarten through third grade students would attend school in Centerville, meaning longer bus rides and larger class sizes.
"It's pretty sad for the community. I went to school here now my children go to school here as well. Cincinnati is a small community so it's nice to know your children are getting a good education in a small classroom of 15 to 16 students versus, if they do close, to the school they are going to end up in Centerville with a classroom of 25 to 30 students," said Angela Beals, a concerned parent.
Another major concern is that 30 jobs would be eliminated. "There's going to be a lot of jobs lost. My mom works for the Cincinnati school so she's worried about it. It's a depressing time," said Dustin Smolders, a Cincinnati resident.
Many citizens are also concerned more money will be spent since the schools just got a few renovations. "These buildings have just gone under a makeover. If they close these schools that are up to shape and have to now go to a school where it's not and needs to be fixed up, that's a concern to me as a taxpayer, if we are going to have to put out more money," said a concerned citizen named Gary.
Residents in both towns are very unhappy about the possibility of the schools closing and are signing petitions and working together to try to keep both schools open.
A public meeting was held in Cincinnati Thursday night to allow concerned citizens to express their opinions. Public meetings are scheduled for Monday at 6 p.m. in Centerville and Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. in Mystic.
TV Station Profiles & Public Inspection Files forKTVO