Topeka ? It’s referred to as the “C” word and it strikes fear and dread in most legislators.

It’s the idea that many school districts, especially small, shrinking ones in rural western Kansas, should consolidate to save money.

But “the handwriting is on the wall,” Lawrence Supt. Randy Weseman said.

With the Legislature under court order to fund schools guided by a new cost-study analysis, the possibility of merging school districts looms large.

The Legislative Post-Audit analysis says schools need $400 million to $470 million more this year, with much of the funding going to urban districts in Wichita, Topeka, and Kansas City, Kan., which have dense pockets of low-income students.

The analysis says low-enrollment weighting – additional funds given to help small districts overcome the extra costs of their smaller, more remote operations – must be reduced.

More than 140 of the state’s 300 school districts get more money than they need to get their students to required performance levels, the analysis concluded.

But those districts contend any reduction would sink their schools, which they say are often the glue holding their communities together.

“Low-enrollment weighting is the lifeblood of our districts,” said lobbyist Patrick Hurley, who represents the Kansas Education Coalition, a group of small districts.

“Small school districts feel very threatened” by the cost analysis, Hurley said.

Foot-dragging

Some education officials have said the reason there had been little movement on school finance so far this session was because of opposition from rural legislators.

“That’s what is holding this up,” Weseman said. “Not only do they want to be held harmless, they won’t pass anything until these districts get more funding.

“They can continue to Band-Aid this thing, but there is some consolidation that will have to occur. No one has the courage to take that up,” he said.

Half the school districts in the state have fewer students than Lawrence’s West Junior High School.

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius said there was no support in the Legislature for a school finance bill that would help one group of schools at the expense of another.

“There was a lot of panic among, I think, a number of rural legislators that may be not well-founded because I don’t get a lot of appetite among urban legislators to say, well, we’re going to take all the money and shift it over and force closing of schools and attendance centers,” she said.

Administrative merging

Sebelius said she favored consolidating school administrative functions.

“Whatever recommendation comes about, there will be an increased acceleration in consolidation discussions.

“There’s a lot of belief that the consolidation needs to happen at the administrative level, and less at the attendance center level because there really are distance problems with a lot of kids who can’t spend two hours on the bus and then be expected to learn.

“But whether we need a superintendent for 100 kids or 150 kids, I think that is where the discussion is likely to be focused,” she said.

Jim Hays, a research specialist for the Kansas Association of School Boards, however, said rural schools had done a lot toward consolidating administrative functions and some programs.

And, he said, many school superintendents serve in various capacities, such as principals or directors of transportation, food service or special education.

“Superintendents are pretty creative when it comes to saving money,” Hays said. “I don’t think there is a way out there that hasn’t been thought of.”