A Consolidation Controversy In Chickasaw County

CHICKASAW COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – If it’s not broke, why fix it? That seems to be the main point from the three school districts in Chickasaw County who are against consolidating the districts, and having one central district office.

Earlier this year, the Legislature passed a bill for consolidation in the county that’s made up of Houston, Okolona, and Houlka schools.

It may seem like a win for the state, but it feels like a loss for the three schools districts.

“Our finances are in order. The children’s scores are going up. A lot of great things are happening at Okolona, and also in Houston, and we just don’t understand what’s going on. Why would you force us to consolidate when we did the things you asked us to do.”

That’s how Consolidation Commission Member and Chickasaw County District III Supervisor, Russell Brooks feels, but he knows the consolidation is inevitable, so it being equitable is his next goal.

“We just want to make sure we promote fairness throughout this newly new consolidated school district, but we could not come up with that, and so therefore with that, we decided to vote against the governing structure put in place,” says Okolona Superintendent, Dexter Green.

That’s because a common ground between the three districts has been hard to find.

“They’re proposing to have the central office located at Houston, and we made the recommendation to possibly have a centralized central office in a centralized location in Chickasaw County, as where all citizens would have an opportunity to participate in the schooling process. That recommendation went, but it was denied,” says Green.

Other commission members want the new board based on which area is pitching in the most, both in dollars and students.

“It comes back to the board representation, and the size of each district, and how representation should come from each district. Houston is about 60% of the population of the county, and provides about that in tax revenue, and needs to be represented like that on a consolidated board,” says Houston School Board President, Daniel Heeringa.

Since the commission couldn’t come to an agreement, the state will more than likely take over the consolidation planning.

We reached out to the Chickasaw County Superintendent, and she declined our request for an interview.