North Fayette and Valley special election is Tuesday, Feb. 7

The fate of the North Fayette and Valley school districts will be decided in six days when members of those communities head to the polls on Tuesday, Feb. 7.

The patrons of each district will be voting on whether or not to merge the two districts to officially become North Fayette Valley Community School District, and then vote on a Revenue Purpose Statement for the new district.

The Revenue Purpose Statement will remain the same as it currently is, but because a new district is formed, it needs to be voted on again.

Two community members, Tobin Britt of West Union and Allen Knox of Clermont, spoke about the positives of the two school districts officially coming together. Britt is the president of Bank 1st in West Union and currently has a son and daughter attending North Fayette Valley High School and Middle School, respectively. Allen Knox is a Valley graduate who sent all of his children to Valley schools. Both are members of the Citizens Advisory Committee brought together to help navigate the reorganization process.

Both men were quick to praise each district for having the courage to give the merger a trial run when whole-grade sharing started during the 2013-2014 school year.  

“When the schools got together, they had a shared vision of doing what's best for the students,” Britt said. “From my view, as both a parent and community member, the test period proved that this was a good idea. Everyone worked well together; it didn’t matter what building you were in or what town you were from. Our school districts became a community, even though we have different locations.”

Those who voiced opposition when the two school districts were considering whole-grade sharing often used not wanting to lose the traditions of the two individual schools districts as a reason not to come together. Knox dismissed this very quickly with a simple question.

“A tradition will normally point back to colors and mascots,” he said. “That gets to be a big issue. I consistently proposed through [whole-grade sharing] discussions that the colors for NFV should have been purple and gold and the mascot should be the Wolverine because that is what it was in Wadena when I was in grade school.

“Very few people that I talk to knew that Wadena was purple and gold,” he added. “In fact, I have asked people to tell me what the mascots and colors were at Clermont, Elgin, or Wadena before they merged into Valley. People that have been around here their whole lives couldn't tell me. So, tradition gets morphed and you start a new tradition.”

Britt and Knox have pointed to the students’ quick acceptance of the sharing agreement as proof that the two districts should officially merge.

“Just as important is the fact that the students work well together,” Britt said. “When it comes time to say, ‘Hey, let’s make this permanent,’ it is a no-brainer as far as I’m concerned. You have a good thing. Why wouldn’t you keep doing it? I go to the sporting events, fine arts, speech and music events and it is just wonderful. I can’t see where there are any negatives to the merger.”

“What impresses me is the way the kids have accepted it,” Knox added. “They just seem fine.”

Britt added that with declining enrollment in all rural districts, it is good to be proactive like this. He stated that eventually, the state could come in and choose with whom the districts merge, rather than getting to choose for themselves.

Residents of the two districts can vote early in the Fayette County Auditor's Office now through 11 a.m on Tuesday, Feb. 7, or request an absentee ballot up until Friday, Feb. 3.

Each district will have three polling locations that will be open noon to 8 p.m. on Feb. 7. The locations are as follows: Clermont, Clermont Fire Hall; Elgin, Elgin Public Library; Fayette, Fayette Community Library; Hawkeye, Hawkeye Public Library; Wadena, Wadena Public Library; West Union, Assembly Room at the Fayette County Courthouse.