By Dan Bechtold
Editor
The Colome Consolidated School Board will hold a special election on June 20. The election will be on the reorganization plan submitted to the South Dakota Department of Education to dissolve the consolidated part of the Colome School District.
The deadline to register to vote in this election is June 5. Persons can register to vote at the Tripp County Auditor’s Office.
On June 20, the election polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The polling places will be at the fire hall in Colome, the city hall (post office) in Witten and the community hall in Wood.
Persons can also cast an absentee ballot.
A vote for the proposed school district reorganization plan would be to approve the plan as it is written and approved by the South Dakota Department of Education.
If the plan is approved, the Mellette County land area that is currently in the Colome, Consolidated School District would attach to the White River School District. The Tripp County land area around Witten that is currently in the Colome Consolidated School District would attach to the Winner School District and the Tripp County land area south and east of Winner that is currently in the Colome Consolidated School District would become the Colome School District. The school in Colome would remain open.
A vote
against this plan would be to deny approval of the plan as it was written and
approved by the S.D. Department of Education.
If the plan is not approved there would be no changes to the current district
land boundaries and the school would remain the Colome Consolidated School
District. The school in Colome would remain open and students living in the Wood
and Witten area would be provided transportation or mileage to the school in
Colome.
The elementary school in Wood closed last year. Citizens from the Wood and Witten area petitioned to dissolve the consolidated district.
Colome became a consolidated school district in 2009. A public vote approved the consolidation with Wood and Witten. At that time, both the Wood and Witten elementary schools were open.
On Oct. 10, 2022, the Colome Consolidated School board received a verified petition from Wood/Witten area registered voters requesting the school board develop a reorganization plan dissolving the school district and to hold an election.
If approved, the new plan would take effect July 1, 2024.
Public meetings on the reorganization plan were held Nov. 28 in Wood and Dec. 5 in Colome.
The Department of Education set the election for June 20.
If persons in this consolidated school district want to vote in this election they must register to vote by June 5.
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