But the ultimate perk in a split is a more manageable sized district, with greater and more focused community representation that can only translate into good things for kids, supporters say.

Research shows smaller is better in terms of class size — 15 to 19 kids being optimal — and schools, with an optimum put at 200- to 400- student elementaries and 400 to 900 student middle- and high-schools, according to a study by the Utah Education Policy Center, conducted for Holladay and South Salt Lake cities and Salt Lake County as they examined breaking away from Granite School District.

Split supporters note smaller schools and classes are products of smaller school districts.

That is certainly the case among rural Utah School Districts, according to State Office of Education 2006 fiscal year staffing ratios. Jordan District had the states' largest class sizes with an average 26.67 students per teacher, state numbers show. By comparison, the 23,000-student Salt Lake District had 22 students per teacher.

Then again, the 6,300-student Murray District has 23 students per teacher, the same as Granite District, which is more than 10 times bigger than Murray.

Research, however, doesn't pinpoint an optimal size school district, the education policy center reported. Andrea Rorrer, center director and U. assistant professor in educational leadership and policy, notes smaller school districts won't necessarily guarantee smaller schools and class sizes.

But Cullimore argues a smaller district would offer the freedom to create smaller class sizes, because of fewer students per school and stable to slightly declining enrollments.

There's also a chance a new district could benefit from economies of scale, supporters say. A former Colorado school funding method gave more money to very small districts and those over 25,500 students, where legislative researchers there found economies of scale began to erode.

"It really boils down to some basic concepts of having an 80,000-student school district that is bureaucratic and difficult to work with vs. a district that would have half as many students," Cullimore said. "The reasons we are doing this is to create an opportunity to change."

"It's much easier to make changes with a small group than it is with a large group," said West Jordan Mayor David Newton, who favors forming a school district just for his own west-side city.

But a West Jordan succession could be risky, said City Councilwoman Melissa Johnson. As she sees it, that proposal is hinged on the belief the east side will break away. But what if the east-side vote fails?