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This photo shows a classroom at West Monona High School in Onawa, Iowa. Enrollment in the district has dropped from 1,100 students to 714 in less than a quarter-century. (Photo by Jody Ewing) |
EDITOR'S NOTE: This
is the second part of Journal correspondent Jody Ewing's series on
Monona County, the only county in Iowa with more people over the age of
65 than under age 17. This part focuses on possible solutions to this
population trend. They involve education and economic development.
ONAWA,
Iowa -- In less than a quarter-century, the West Monona Community
School District has seen its enrollment drop from 1,100 students to
714. Though West Monona's enrollment over the years has decreased 36
percent, no programs or co-curricular activities have been cut.
In fact, the school has been adding.
The Early Childhood
Development Center, attached to the Lark elementary building, opened in
June 2001. The "Center" is a $1.3 million dollar effort containing two
Head Start classrooms, a 90-child day care unit and a private preschool.
The school district also funded a library/media/computer complex and a
special education preschool classroom.
"The
West Monona School District tries to offer a wide range of services,"
Superintendent Dr. John Stanton said. "We still have the School to Work
program, family consumer science has a student club and the high school
Key Club promotes community service leadership."
The school
districthas 61 teachers and 40 other staff members, with an average
student-teacher ratio of 12 to 1. It also defies the odds of graduates
returning to Monona County.
"We have 22 Morningside College graduates who work for the school
system," said Stanton.
Local educators in battle
The
problems currently facing many Iowa schools go beyond keeping college
graduates here. A survey of Iowa school superintendents finds that
Iowa's local schools are struggling to deal with years of shrinking
state support.
In a news conference last month in Des Moines,
Senate Democratic Leader Mike Gronstal discussed the results of the
Web-based survey sent in March to 351 Iowa school districts. The survey
asked school superintendents how they were dealing with cuts in
education and what response their district would consider next year.
Of
the 226 who have responded, 71 percent are considering increasing class
sizes, 37 percent are considering cutting course offerings and 77
percent are considering layoffs and/or leaving positions vacant.
In addition, 26 schools are considering increasing property taxes by
passing an instructional support levy.
"Iowa's
educators are clearly and emphatically telling the Legislature that
enough is enough," Gronstal said. "It is time to stop cutting
educational opportunities for Iowa children."
Iowa lawmakers did
pass a 4 percent allowable growth package for 2005, which comes on the
heels of a 2 percent growth package this year. However, both occur
after cuts which have taken place since 2001 (a $78 million cut that
year).
Myron Ballain, Whiting Community School District
superintendent, reported that four employees will be laid off and the
district's instrumental music position and vocal music position will be
combined into one position. The elementary computer lab, which provides
support instruction for K-6 reading and math, will be eliminated.
Delayed
purchases for the school district include textbooks for all courses,
computers, printers, sewing machines and cooking equipment for consumer
education courses, and replacement saws and tools for industrial arts.
"Legislators
had best be prepared for the backlash from parents and communities when
they discover that the crisis was created via lack of leadership and
foresight on the part of our Iowa legislators," said Ballain, now in
his second year serving the Monona County school.
Many Monona
County high school graduates attend Western Iowa Tech Community College
in Sioux City, where a two-year technical degree often offers an edge
in the county's competitive job market.
Among those employed in
the county, 28.6 percent are in management, professional or related
occupations. Sales and office positions account for 24.9 percent and
service occupations total 17.1 percent. Rounding out the work force is
construction and maintenance work (12.4 percent), and production and
transportation (15.2 percent). Trailing the others are farming, fishing
and forestry occupations, accounting for 1.9 percent of Monona County
workers.
"The wealth here has always been agriculture," said
Charles Hitchman III, president of Blencoe State Bank. "We need to look
past that as part of a new wealth. We have to look at something other
than agriculture."
Economic development is key
Monona
County's top employers in the private industry reflect the growing
trend of an elderly population. Onawa's Burgess Memorial Hospital leads
with approximately 230 employees, followed by Whiting's Pleasantview
care facility and Maple Heights in Mapleton.
The Monona County
Courthouse in Onawa employs 125, the majority in county government
positions with a few reimbursed through the state.
According to
latest U.S. Census Bureau data, average earnings per job are $19,749,
with a median household income of $33,235. Since the 2000 census, the
county's population has dropped from 10,020 to a 2002 estimate of 9,827.
"It's
cyclical here," said Hitchman. "We've lost a lot of businesses in the
past five years or so. The airport took about 18 jobs, and 10 or so
when Cargill closed. Every time we lose a company or business, it cuts
down on groceries bought and other funds normally going back into the
county."
At the "Imagine Iowa" conference in Ames, former state
economist Harvey Siegelman said that Iowa's fastest growing industries
are "in insurance and finance, and in hospitality and recreation."
Neither of those, he said, are what we'd think of as traditional growth
industries in Iowa.
Hitchman, who served 10 years on the
county's economic development board, said it tried to lure several
businesses to the area, but failed.
"We hired a full-time
director to go out and promote this area and try to get them here," he
said. "We got contributions from all the cities and the county and
still were unsuccessful."
The main problem: Location.
"We
were too far away," Hitchman said, adding that it didn't make sense.
"We have a rail here for distributors, which one day will be a double
rail, and have interstate two miles from the rail. We also have the
(Missouri) River."
Silver lining
Other factors
point to fields of opportunities. Morgan Quitno Press' Most Livable
State Award ranked Iowa as No. 2 in 2003. MQP bases the rankings on 43
statistical indicators that reflect the kind of lifestyle that most
Americans agree is positive: Affordable housing, safe streets, good
employment opportunities, a strong education system and a healthy state
economy.
The North American Business Cost Review in its 2002 addition ranked
Iowa fifth in the lowest cost of doing business.
Onawa's
economic development program promotes incentives designed to encourage
new and established business. A tax abatement program is available for
residential or commercial housing development and central business
district development.
The Downtown/Exterior Facade Program
offers a $2,500 matching grant and loan to downtown businesses that
improve the exterior or facade of their business. Other programs
include a cash discount on utility bills for new or relocated
businesses.
So what else can Monona County do?
"We can
start with warehouse type work, and give concessions to new businesses
like the new tile business in Onawa," said Hitchman. "Monona County
needs someone dynamic to head up and promote Monona County. It would be
a full-time occupation, and they'd need to travel and find factories
and jobs willing to relocate here. Their salary would be more than
compensated by the additional jobs created and those salaries coming
back into Monona County."
Copyright ©
2005 Sioux City Journal
Tuesday, May 18, 2004