Julie Ball

jball@citizen-times.com

MURPHY - Cherokee County school officials are considering closing a small elementary school amid declining enrollment and fewer state dollars.

Superintendent Jeana Conley presented a feasibility study to school board members Thursday evening regarding the possible closing of Marble Elementary. The board will hold a public hearing at 6 p.m. May 16 at Marble Springs Baptist Church.

Marble Elementary has 104 students including 17 out-of-district students.

“Marble Elementary was my first job. In 1992, I was Teacher of the Year there. This has not been an easy proposal to put together,” Conley said Thursday afternoon. “The schools are the anchors of their communities. They always have been. It is a difficult thing.”

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But district enrollment has been declining, and in 2012, the district lost $1.5 million in state funding.

Enrollment has decreased from 3,613 students in 2008 to 3,236 students this year. The school system has 65 fewer employees compared to 2009, she said.

Conley said the district lost two more state-funded teaching positions in December when the state adjusted the district's teacher allotment.

Another challenge is making state-mandated class size requirements work with such a small group of students at Marble Elementary. The district is also dealing with maintenance costs for its aging buildings. “Our newest building is 20 years old,” Conley said.

County commissioners increased funding last year, Conley said. “And one of the things that we talked about was becoming more efficient. They have actually charged us with giving them a long-range plan,” she said.

Marble Elementary is 6.5 miles from Andrews Elementary. Moving those students will provide students with access to more resources, she said.

“Marble Elementary does not have a gym. They have a makeshift library in the back of their cafeteria. Marble Elementary has a counselor only one day a week. Marble Elementary rarely sees a school nurse. They rarely see the school resource officer,” Conley said. “By eliminating a campus that allows us to take resources that are already spread very thin and spread them a little less thin.”

Employees at Marble Elementary would be moved into other jobs within the system, she said.

Cherokee County is the latest Western North Carolina school system to consider closing a school.

Haywood school officials closed Central Elementary at the end of the last school year despite pleas from parents to keep it open. Haywood also saw declining enrollment and less state funding, according to officials. And Yancey County school officials are planning to close three aging schools and consolidate them into a single new elementary school.