Britton-Deerfield Merger Imminent

   The formal vote for the consolidation of Deerfield Public Schools with Britton Public Schools will not take place until a joint session of the two school boards on Thursday, but the merger of the two school districts appears to be a foregone conclusion.
   The two school systems have combined on many ventures already. The athletic teams for the districts have fielded combined teams for years and recently there have been many meetings to discuss joint services with the possibility of combining completely. Current economic conditions have brought home the advantages of pooling all resources.
   The Deerfield School Board met in regular session Monday night and all comments from the trustees were favorable for the unification. The marriage is somewhat reluctant, however, in that both districts regret the financial pressure that has forced the measure, but there were also many comments about the already firmly established camaraderie of the students who have played together and cheered together for the same teams.
   The consensus of the Deerfield board is that a consolidation with some other school district was inevitable and that they could think of no other district that they would rather combine with than Britton. The actual process of deciding how the buildings for each district will be used, how to combine the curriculums, transportation details, and how to present the issue to the voters remains.
    Contract negotiations of contracts for superintendent would begin as soon as possible. Deerfield is still looking for a superintendent to replace interim head administrator Richard Fauble. That search is ongoing and the board will shortly be presented with three candidates to consider. Contracts for other administrators would need to be in place by May 10. Agreements with other staff members would be in place by mid-summer.
   One of the downsides of the merger, and there are a few for both districts, is that combining the schools will necessitate lay offs of some staff. School officials will also be careful to minimize any impact a merger might have on the number of school of choice students Britton currently has from Tecumseh. Benefits include more class offerings and better pricing on some services. The deadline for lay off notices is April 1, which gives the administrators only two weeks to prepare the pink slips.
  The groundwork for presenting the wording of a ballot proposal in time for the May 24 deadline for ballot language has been laid and a formal vote could be scheduled during the Aug. 3 general election this summer.
  The actual starting date for a unified Britton-Deerfield district would not be until Sept. 6, 2011.
  “What you are doing is difficult, but it is the right thing to do,” Supt. Fauble told the board. Britton Supt. Chuck Pelham was at the meeting and had spoken warmly about the prospect of consolidation. During a brief recess before the Deerfield trustees went into executive session, when asked about the possible outcome of Thursday’s joint vote Pelham responded, “We know how we’re going to vote.”