Below are the comments of MCPS Chairwoman Toni Rehbein at a September 2007, Finance and Operations Meeting.
Prescott School Missoula is speechless at reading Rehbein's words about a priceless and popular neighborhood school.
Prescott School Missoula would like to warn supporters of Prescott that their blood pressure may go up after reading Rehbein's comments below.
"Well, I agree with Rick. I think it would be in our best interests to get an appraisal on that property so we know what kind of value we
are talking about. We are looking at some hefty price tags you know whether, as Jim (Jim Clark) was saying, we stay in this building, or remodel, or build another school. And given that we have Mt. Jumbo out in that neighborhood. And if a miracle ever occurred and we did see that kind of increase in enrollment, we got a building. And I don't see how we would ever be able to afford to staff a building as small as Prescott with our current expenses. So it doesn't seem like its a particularly necessary, or I'm not going to say that, a necessary asset right now, and if we could use those funds toward deferring costs that are going to serve more students, then I think it may be some thing that we may want to look into. Information never hurts. I'd like to have that information for discussion.
- For Rehbein to have the gall to state that the district would not have the funds to staff Prescott School is outrageous! Isn't a school building one of if not the most important part of a school system?!
- Rehbein is also stating that Mt. Jumbo School is in the neighborhood of the lower Rattlesnake area. This is ridiculous. Mt. Jumbo is approximately 2 miles away in E. Missoula.
- Rattlesnake parents have always liked Mt. Jumbo School itself, however, have disliked their children traveling on the freeway to get there. For that reason, many parents have driven their children from the Rattlesnake area to Mt. Jumbo School.
- Prescott School has served the Rattlesnake neighborhood for over a century. MCPS has had the ability to fund Prescott School during difficult times in our country's history - there is no reason it couldn't now with record amounts of money flowing into the school district.
- Prescott School Missoula does not believe that Rehbein prefaced her remarks with the information that she served as president of MIS.
- The comment on a possible miracle if enrollment increased shows her lack of understanding of Missoula demographics. For many years there was knowledge that MCPS enrollment WOULD increase due to the upcoming (now arrived) echo echo boom. Rehbein, along with her other disloyal Trustee-mates, have IGNORED this information. Dr. Larry Swanson has provided the district with demographic information for many years, as he worked for free prior to being commissioned to provide a comprehensive demographic study (which most Trustees still ignore).
- A "miracle" did occur and enrollment did increase Chairwoman Rehbein. One cannot call the increase in enrollment a "miracle". The increase in enrollment was expected (see comment above).
- Enrollment increased so much since the comments above that Rattlesnake School was at capacity for the past three years
- The at capacity situation at Rattlesnake School resulted in the district's decision to build an expensive modular at Rattlesnake the summer of 2012 (instead of re-opening Prescott School) which would have provided more classroom space for the projected future increase in enrollment.
- Prescott School Missoula has more to say on Rehbein's disloyal comments, however, psm must take a break in order to calm down after typing out Rehbein's obvious bias for Missoula International School - a school for which she served as president shortly before being elected to the MCPS Board of Trustees.
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