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State Sens. (from left) John Wozniak, Andrew Dinniman and Jeffrey Piccola attend a state Senate Education Committee hearing Friday at St. Francis University in Loretto. John Rucosky
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Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak speaks during the hearing John Rucosky
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Talking mergers: Senators urged to consolidate schools
LORETTO — If the state’s 500 school districts consolidated into 100 districts, it would bring an economy of scale to taxpayers and expanded opportunities for students.
That was the message repeated by researchers and education professionals to a state Senate Education Committee hearing Friday afternoon at St. Francis University.
Although no local superintendents or educators testified, others who did overwhelmingly supported Gov. Ed Rendell’s push for school district consolidations.
The committee is holding hearings across the state, and Sen. John Wozniak, D-Westmont, is sponsoring legislation to establish a school merger commission.
Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak, a former superintendent of Greater Johnstown School District, endorsed Rendell’s plan to cut the number of districts from 500 to 100 as a way to reduce costs and improve education.
Rendell’s administration hopes to push many areas to countywide districts, believing that consolidation would help correct inequities in academic performance and property taxes.
The state has more than 200 districts with fewer than 2,000 students.
Consolidation would enable state school districts to “buy big and deliver small,” taking advantage of economies of scale to save money for taxpayers, while preserving small community schools, Zahorchak said.
“Let me be clear: School district consolidation does not necessitate closing individual schools,” he said.
He also endorsed Wozniak’s bill, which would set up a 15-member commission that would recommend a plan for reorganization. The group would include eight lawmakers, with the rest being educators and school administrators.
Consolidation is not new to the state, Zahorchak said. In 1955, there were 2,700 separate school districts. By 1962, there were 1,900. That process should continue, he said.
Others testifying cited a 2006 study by Standard and Poor’s, which found the highest per pupil spending in very small districts – an average of $9,774 – and a low of $8,057 per pupil in districts of 2,500 to 2,999 students.
The study made hypothetical “pairings” with some districts and found cost savings.
In Cambria County, for example, pairing the Penn Cambria School District with either Portage or Glendale would bring efficiencies. Likewise, pairing Central Cambria with either Blacklick Valley, Conemaugh Valley or Ferndale would be financially advantageous, the report said.
But in interviewing superintendents, Standard and Poor’s staff found concerns about socioeconomic and demographic differences, different traditions, less local control and a loss of local identity.
The Allegheny Institute for Public Policy found some exceptions to the rule. Pittsburgh, for example, has a higher percentage of administrative employees, even though it is a large district.
And some arguments for consolidation are valid, while others are not, said Eric Montarti, senior policy analyst.
For example, consolidating multiple districts with different teaching unions at different pay levels could be “troubling,” and transportation costs in rural districts might increase, he said.
Wozniak urged speakers and committee members to “keep our eye on the ball as to whether we need a commission to take the next step.”
Committee members predicted controversy and more debate once the issue of consolidation hits the streets.
“We need a commission to look at individual districts and make recommendations. Otherwise, this committee is biting off more than it can chew,” Wozniak said.
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