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Lincoln School not on the agenda, but draws crowd
(Clinton) -- Although a specific plan to close Lincoln Alternative School has been proposed-the discussion of the idea drew supporters to the school board meeting last night
About 60 people showed up at the Clinton School Board meeting Monday night to protest the potential closing of Lincoln School, the district’s alternative high school.
The school board is considering a plan to move the program into a building owned by the district on the campus of Clinton High School. Those who spoke urged the board to fix up the current program, not move it.
District officials have said low numbers of students and low graduation rates are reasons to consider closing the school, which occupies a former elementary school building at 1850 S. Bluff Blvd. Although there would be no significant cost savings to the district, officials hope that having better access to the high school facilities and programs will improve attendance and graduation rates.
Retired Lincoln principal Dennis Duerling questioned the move. “Who woke up and decided that Lincoln was too successful and we must secretly dismantle it?” he asked. He said 722 students have graduated since Lincoln opened in 1986, with many of those students taking more than four years to gain their diplomas. He blamed the school district administration for “tearing it to shreds.”
Retired principal Gary Herrity cautioned the board about “dismantling a program that has been successful.” He said students attending the alternative school have great potential. Herrity said he helped research the establishment of an alternative school.
Lena Pillers, a 2002 Lincoln graduate, said she was bullied so badly at Clinton High School that she couldn’t eat lunch in the cafeteria and Lincoln was an alternative for her. After graduating from Lincoln, Pillers said she graduated from Clinton Community College and then earned her four-year degree from Ashford University, Clinton. She currently works in human services in Davenport, helping youth like those who attend Lincoln.
Retired teacher Rhonda Mohl, who taught 21 years at Lincoln, said the reduction from 10 teachers to three is one of the bigger reasons for the declining number of students at the school. She now teaches at the alternative high school at the nearby Northeast District.
The program has about 55 students, with average attendance about 40 percent and a graduation rate of about 30 percent, Superintendent Deb Olson has said.
The 10 people who spoke — mostly teachers or former employees plus a few Lincoln graduates — shared a common theme, asking that the board keep an open mind and consider fixing the Lincoln program. They said closing the school would be bad for the community as well as students.
The board didn’t discuss the plan or take any action because the item was not on the agenda.
Written 2/12/2013 by Dave Vickers - KROS News
