Van Buren Community School District

Van Buren Community School District is a school district headquartered in Keosauqua, Iowa, United States.[1]

It serves sections of Van Buren and Davis counties. The district serves the following incorporated communities: Keosauqua, Birmingham, Cantril, Milton, and Stockport. It also served two census-designated places in unincorporated Van Buren County; Douds and Leando.[2]

History

On July 1, 2004, the Fox Valley Community School District merged into the Van Buren district.[3]

In January 2016 the Harmony district and the Harmony Community School District agreed to begin a grade-sharing arrangement in which Harmony-zoned students attended Van Buren schools for grades 7–12.[4] This arrangement began in fall 2016. The Harmony district's junior and senior high school closed the previous spring.[5]

Impetus to merge came to changes on how the Iowa state government gave money to schools as well as decreasing numbers of students.[6] In January 2018 the administrations of the Van Buren and Harmony districts began to consider merging. In February 2018 83% of the voters in the Van Buren and Harmony districts voted to merge, with 94% (of 637 voters) in favor in the pre-merger Van Buren district and 72% (of 619 voters) in favor in the pre-merger Harmony district.[7]

The requirement for a merge was for both districts to each have over 50% of voters in favor.[8]

There was a single superintendent and school board for both areas beginning on July 1, 2019.[7] On that day the Van Buren County Community School District formed.[9]

Schools

List of schools:[10]

There was a middle school in Stockport, but in 2011 Van Buren CSD school board chose to close that building and move the middle school to Keosauqua. The vote was a 4-2 basis,[12] and done to reduce expenses.[13]

References

  1. ^ "Home". Van Buren Community School District. 2019-02-28. Archived from the original on 2019-02-28. Retrieved 2020-04-05. 807 1st Street Keosauqua, IA 52565
  2. ^ "VAN BUREN." Iowa Department of Education. Retrieved on June 20, 2018. - See also Map of Douds and map of Leando from the 2010 U.S. Census, U.S. Census Bureau
  3. ^ "REORGANIZATION & DISSOLUTION ACTIONS SINCE 1965–66." Iowa Department of Education. Retrieved on February 25, 2019.
  4. ^ Aguirre, Joey (2016-01-31). "Harmony/Van Buren make whole grade sharing official". The Hawk Eye. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  5. ^ Aguirre, Joey (2016-05-23). "Harmony sends off its final graduating class". The Hawk Eye. Retrieved 2018-06-20.
  6. ^ "Voters approve consolidation of two Iowa school districts". Newton Daily News. 2018-02-08. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
  7. ^ a b Niehaus, Michaele (2018-02-06). "Van Buren, Harmony to merge". The Hawk Eye. Retrieved 2018-06-20.
  8. ^ Niehaus-Steffensmeier, Michaele (2018-01-14). "Voters could derail consolidation of districts". The Hawkeye. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  9. ^ "Iowa Educational Directory 2019-2020 School Year" (PDF). Iowa Department of Education. p. 175. Retrieved 2020-04-05. (PDF p. 177/186) - From section "REORGANIZATION & DISSOLUTION ACTIONS SINCE 1965-66"
  10. ^ "Van Buren Community School District." Southern Prairie Area Education Agency 15. May 10, 1997. Retrieved on June 20, 2018.
  11. ^ "Van Buren Community School District." Southern Prairie Area Education Agency 15. May 10, 1997. Retrieved on June 20, 2018.
  12. ^ Hassanali, Zoheb (2011-03-17). "Stockport Middle School to close". KTVO. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
  13. ^ Deffenbaugh, Greg (2011-06-02). "Southeast Iowa middle school closing". KTVO. Retrieved 2020-04-05.

Further reading