By Emma Rausch
emma@thepaperofwabash.com
WABASH, Ind. – Wabash City Schools joined MSD of Wabash County Tuesday night, Jan. 17, in a pursuit to seek Community Foundation of Wabash County funding for a school study.
In a 4-0 vote, WCS School Board approved a recommendation to allow Superintendent Jason Callahan to submit a funding proposal to the Foundation with other interested district superintendents. Board member Mary Ann Tait was absent from the meeting.
On Jan. 3, the Community Foundation invited local school corporations to submit a funding proposal for the purpose of affording outside consultants to conduct various studies, which may include a feasibility study.
MSD of Wabash County Board of Education also accepted the Foundation’s invitation on Tuesday, Jan. 10.
“The Community Foundation provided us an opportunity to help facilitate an educational study,” Callahan told the WCS board, “and we need to take a look at what that says about how we’re delivering education and we can better serve our kids and better serve (our) mission statement.”
The study hasn’t come soon enough, WCS Board President Kimberly Pinkerton added.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve had a thorough study in the county,” she said.
Board member Brandon France said he openly supported working with other districts to seek the funding.
“I think, community wide, we are better together,” France said. “I think it’s time that we start looking at our interests and we work together to find a common solution for what we can do, what we do well … and try to work together to get kids to college or … a trade school or it might be a professional licensing or some other avenue.”
In other news, the school board accepted a $1,690 donation from Parkview Wabash Hospital for a filtered water bottle filler for O.J. Neighbours Elementary School’s Be Well O.J. initative.
The board also approved a recommendation to waive facility rental fees for the Kiwanis Spelling Bee, which will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 7, at 6 p.m. in the Wabash Middle School auditorium.