Painful changes for schools

PROVO — After 14 months of oftentimes heated debate, the Provo Board of Education took just over an hour to bid a fond farewell to Farrer Middle School by adopting a 10-year master plan that will convert it into an elementary for Joaquin Elementary School students.

A handful of parents in attendance, many who had been vocal opponents of closing Farrer, stepped outside to call friends and family to give them the bad news. Others shook their heads in disbelief.

The decision, however, was a victory for the board, which has struggled to come to agreement on a way to handle shifting growth and aging buildings on a limited budget.

"We can make something great out of it," board President Shannon Poulsen said, tears streaming down her face. "We're trying to do the best we can."

The plan — which is based on a new east/west alignment, one of three options considered by the board — will be implemented in three phases starting with the 2005-06 school year:

• Closing Joaquin Elementary and converting Farrer Middle School into an elementary for those students. One exception is that students in the South Franklin neighborhood will be transferred to Spring Creek Elementary.

• Either rebuilding Timpanogos Elementary or building a new middle school on Provo's west side. If a new middle school is built, Timpanogos would be closed and Dixon Middle School would be converted to elementary use like Farrer.

• Building a new Harbor Park Elementary for students in southwest Provo.

Disagreements among board members over everything from how to finance the plan to how to oversee the middle school band programs had stalled the decision for months.

The final sticking point was where to send Wasatch Elementary School students once Farrer Middle School is closed. Wasatch students had traditionally moved on to Farrer and then to Provo High.

Board member Sandy Packard voiced strong opposition to the east/west alignment that will now send Wasatch students to Centennial Middle School and on to Timpview High School.

She pointed out that Wasatch students represent a disproportionate percentage of student leadership positions and honors courses.

Despite her protest, the board opted for the east/west plan, noting that sending Wasatch students to Timpview will even out student populations at the two high schools.

The district will provide busing for three years for Wasatch students who want to attend Provo High School. After that time, students may still choose to attend Provo High, as long as they provide their own transportation.

That decision didn't keep Provo High student body President Jonathan Pike from worrying about his school's future.