Booming student population pushes need for MCPS long-range facilities plan - Missoulian article in November 2, 2013 edition written by Betsy Cohen

Click on the link below to read an article by Missoulian reporter Betsy Cohen in the November 3rd edition reporting on the overcrowding of Missoula County Public Schools such as Rattlesnake School, just up the road from Prescott School.

The school district has been disloyal and negligent in actions taken which affect our Rattlesnake Valley students.

They have closed and sold Lincoln School (1986?) so that it is not available for handling the overflow from Rattlesnake School.

MCPS Trustees then closed Prescott School (2004) and subsequently leased it (also 2004) to a private school Missoula International School.

Citizens, including a math professor at the University of Montana, have figured that the losses to the district have been in the hundreds of thousands and now after 9 years of the Prescott School/MIS lease the loses must be in the millions of dollars.

This is all due to the state funding formula which attaches approximately $5,000 to each student.

So when a student decides to attend a private school the district loses that $5,000.  It is significant when a Missoula student decides to home school or attend a private school. It is even more significant and downright disloyal on the part of MCPS trustees and administrators when the student ATTENDS A PRIVATE SCHOOL WHICH IS HOUSED IN A PUBLIC SCHOOL which is the case of Missoula International School School students at Prescott School.

Another example of disloyalty by MCPS Trustees is the sale of Roosevelt School to St. Joseph's School in 2005. The enrollment of St. Joseph's School grew almost every year since the lease was approved around 1998 (not exactly sure of the year) and especially after the sale in 2005.

Families will surely take into consideration the school facility when deciding on a school including a private school and perhaps more so if a school is private. In each of the cases mentioned the public school was a HUGE UPGRADE IN THE PRIVATE SCHOOL'S PREVIOUS FACILITY/FACILITIES!!

The above cannot be overemphasized. The reason why these private schools pursue the public facility is to improve their school so as to attract additional students (which by the way come from the pool of children which attend MCPS).

Prescott School Missoula went before the Board for most every discussion of the leasing of Prescott School and before that for every attempt at closure.  Along with others, psm mentioned the upcoming enrollment increase, that of the echo echo boom children (the grandchildren of the baby boomers).

This future increase of students throughout the district was substantiated by work done by Dr. Larry Swanson and others. Dr. Swanson had contributed many hours free of charge to the district before 2004 and in 2009 he was contracted to do a comprehensive study for the distinct. (See tab above on this blog).

All of the free and professional work by Dr. Swanson was brushed aside, at the peril of MCPS children and Missoula taxpayers, by the Trustees at this time.

The Trustees whom voted for the 2004 north side closures were: Chairwoman Rosemary Harrison, Trustees Jenda Hemphill, Naomi Kimbell, and David Merrill.

The Trustees whom voted for the 2004 north side closures in the second vote brought on by an open meeting lawsuit against the district by Molly Moody and Allan Oines, were: Rosemary Harrison, Jenda Hemphill, Naomi Kimbell (who later became MIS's executive director - see multiple posts of this blog!), Toni Rehbein, Scott Bixler, and Joe Toth. Trustee Carol Bellin was the lone dissenter.

The Trustees whom voted for the lease of Prescott School to Missoula International School are: Rosemary Harrison, Jenda Hemphill, Naomi Kimbell, Joe Toth, and Scott Bixler. Toni Rehbein recused herself from the vote (See multiple posts on the connections Toni Rehbein has with MIS), and Carol Bellin voted against the lease.

Trustees whom voted for the lease extension in 2009: Scott Bixler, Joe Toth, Joseph Knapp, and others (psm needs to look into the documents for information on other votes).

Trustees whom voted for the Prescott School/MIS lease in 2011: Scott Bixler, Shelly Wills, Joseph Knapp, and Michael Smith.

psm will correct the voting information if any is found to be incorrect and or incomplete.

All of these MCPS Trustees have shown disloyalty to the district by assisting a private school - when their loyalties are by law supposed  to be ONLY to MCPS.

The picture for this article shows a modular at Rattlesnake School.

The article states that for the first time Rattlesnake students are being sent to Paxson.

MIS has received sweat heart leases for 9 years (see blog tab titled "MIS sweartheart lease" 

MIS has been negligent in the care of the playground and perhaps other areas of the school.(See You Tube video)

 MCPS has done maintenance on Prescott School at the district's expense, going against the lease agreement which stipulates that MIS is responsible for repair and maintenance. (See You Tube video)

psm is quite sure  based on past experience that there have been other favors to MIS form the MCPS school district.

Going forward - MCPS needs to let MIS know that the lease will be terminated at the end of this school year(there is surprisingly an opt out clause in the lease - which has not been included for MCPS in past leases). 

THEN MCPS NEEDS TO REOPEN PRESCOTT SCHOOL FOR PUBLIC SCHOOL CHILDREN.

How much more proof is there that WE NEED PRESCOTT SCHOOL!!

Booming student population pushes need for MCPS long-range facilities plan

MCPS gives 13 percent raise to Superintendent Apostle - Missoulian article from the January 16, 2013 edition

The link to the January 16th, 2013 article reporting on MCPS Superintendent's raise is below.

MCPS gives 13 percent raise to Superintendent Apostle

There were 92 comments (!) in the comment section after the article. One can find a lot of interesting information in many of the comments. Actually, Prescott School Missoula is in agreement with most of them as psm is against out-of-line salaries and raises for administrative positions. Remember: psm had a child profoundly effected by the 2004 school closures - the closing of three northeast schools at one time, including Prescott, Rattlesnake Middle School in the Rattlesnake Valley, and Mt. Jumbo in East Missoula.
The reasoning given for the closures was due to financial considerations, i.e. the administration stating there was not enough money to keep the schools open. Ever since this heartbreaking expereince, when there is wasteful spending a feeling of betrayal surfaces for psm - rightfully so, in my opinion.

One of the interesting comments that especially pertains to Prescott School is the following:

"1.   Sherman - January 15, 2013 8:27 pm

  So they had letters from the CEO of Alps. I believe that school board member Mike Smiths wife works for Alps.

also a letter from lambros, I believe lambros, Reibein and Apostle goe to the same church. I wonder how hard it was to get those letters."

"Sherman" states that Michael Smith's wife works for ALPS.  Another person also has worked for ALPS is DAVID REHBEIN - Toni Rehbein's husband. 
Would not the fact that Michael Smith's wife and Toni Rehbein's husband work at the same company be an important fact to know since MCPS Board Chair Toini Rehbein has acvocated for the Prescott/MIS lease several times and Michael Smith has voted for the Prescott/MIS lease extension.

As stated in many of the posts on this blog Missoula County Public Schools Board Chair served on the Board of Missoula International School shortly before being elected to the MCPS Board in 2004.

Was the reason Michael Smith ran for the school board to help secure the lease of Prescott School for Missoula International School?  It seems entirely possible, especially now that we know his connections to the Rehbeins.

Missoula builder, remodeler picked as newest MCPS trustee - Missoulian article from October 6th, 2010

Click on the link below to read an October, 2010 Missoulian article on the appointment of Michael Smith to the MCPS Board replacing Nancy Pickhardt.

Missoula builder, remodeler picked as newest MCPS trustee


Prescott School Missoula's thinking on this appointment:


Michael Smith is one of the trustees that voted for the MIS/Prescott School lease extension in 2011. It seems that Chairwoman Toni Rehbein held Smith in high regard.

Prescott School Missoula has read in Missoulian comments that Smith's wife works for ALPS. If this is correct there may be problems with conflict of interest issues.

Why is this? Chairwoman Toni Rehbein's husband has worked for ALPS in the past and may still work there (?). This would indicate that a board member has a spouse whom has worked with Toni Rehbein's husband.

Have either Michael Smith or Chairwoman Rehbein made this fact known to the public as in a public comment to the community. Was this information known to all the Board members during the interview process?

There needs to be a public discussion regarding this relationship to
determine if everything is on the up and up.

Was Michael chosen for his vote to extend the MIS/Prescott lease and did the Rehbein's influence his vote? This is an important question.