Clarion-Goldfield School District

Clarion-Goldfield Community School District is a public school district located in North Central Iowa, in Wright, Hamilton, and Humboldt Counties. The district covers 254 square miles (660 km²), covering the communities of Clarion, Goldfield, and Galt and the unincorporated communities of Holmes and Lake Cornelia. Clarion-Goldfield has a certified enrollment of 807 students in grades K-12. Dows has 139 students in grades K-12 for the 2013-14 school year.. Generally, enrollment increased at Clarion-Goldfield throughout the 1990s and remained steady. Enrollment declined by about 200 students from 2005 to 2010. With the consolidation between Clarion-Goldfield and Dows, effective in 2014-15, the school is projected to have an enrollment of approximately 950 students, making up most of the decline in enrollment. The district maintains an elementary school (K-5), middle school (6-8), and high school, all located in Clarion.

Clarion-Goldfield and Dows effectively consolidated into one district in 2014-15. The Dows Elementary School was closed in 2014. The new district will cover approximately 355 square miles in Wright, Franklin, Hancock, and Humboldt counties. The district serves over 900 students with all classes held in Clarion.

History

The Clarion and Goldfield School Districts began a whole grade sharing agreement, the first in the state, in 1981. Under that agreement, students Goldfield students attended classes at both Clarion and Goldfield while both districts maintained separate K-8 school systems. In 1986, the sharing agreement was expanded and all students in grades 6-12 attended Clarion. Clarion and Goldfield maintained separate elementary schools. In 1993, the districts passed a merger that consolidated them into the Clarion-Goldfield Community School District. An elementary school was maintained in Goldfield until declining enrollment forced the closure of the Goldfield Elementary in 2008. The Goldfield building is still used for athletic events and practices, as a community center, and houses the Iowa Central Community College nursing program.^[2]

In 1988, the Boone Valley School District of Renwick passed a voluntary dissolution of their school district. Clarion and Goldfield both added to their boundaries from this dissolution. 30% of the district's boundaries were added to Clarion. Goldfield received less than 5% of the district.

In 2005, the Dows Community School District entered into a ten-year whole grade sharing agreement with Clarion-Goldfield. Dows maintained a P/K-5 elementary school and sent students in grades 6-12 to Clarion. The districts also shared a superintendent, curriculum coordinator, principal, board secretary, and other personnel. Voters in both districts approved reorganization to consolidate the two districts into one district, called Clarion-Goldfield-Dows, beginning in 2014-15. The new school district covers 355 square miles in largely in Wright County with portions in Franklin, Humboldt, and Hancock counties. The Dows Elementary School was closed at the end of 2013-14 after 100 years. All students now attend all classes in Clarion. The Dows School building was sold to a be used to warehouse seed corn. There was public opposition to the sale of the building, with the desire of many in the community to continue to utilize the gymnasium and multipurpose room by the community and school.

In 2015, the Corwith-Wesley School District will dissolve. A small portion of that district will be attached to Clarion-Goldfield-Dows district, expanding the boundaries of the district even more.

Facilities

In 1913, the community of Clarion built a three-story high school located in south of where the middle school stands today. In 1936, the current two-story elementary school was constructed on the same grounds. Two additions to the elementary school were completed in the 1950s, with what is now the middle school (north addition to the 1913 high school) being completed in 1956. That addition connected the buildings into one large facility. At that time, the entire K-12 Clarion Community School was housed in the same complex. In 1969, a new high school was built in the northeast corner of Clarion where it stands today.

In 1993, a bond issue was passed and the 1913 high school building was demolished. A new main entrance to the middle school was built where the buildings were attached and a circle drive was completed to add more parking and access to both the entrances to the elementary and middle schools. An addition was built north of the elementary school that includes a new library media center, ICN room, two computer labs, additional classroom space, and multipurpose room (cafeteria and gym). Extensive renovations were completed to the 1936 elementary building and the kindergarten wing (east elementary addition) at that time as well.

In 2002, four classrooms were added to the north side of the middle school. Additional parking spaces and a sport court were completed at this time as well. In 2003, a new playground was installed at the elementary school and a weight room was built on the high school campus. In 2004 an expansion and renovation project was completed at the high school that includes four new locker rooms, additional athletic office and storage space, wrestling room, art room, pottery room, business room, and two computer labs. The project also installed geothermal heating and cooling to the high school facility.

In 2006, a $4 million bond issue was passed to fund improvements to the middle school and high school facilities. The project saw the 1956 middle school building extensively renovated with new ceilings and lighting, floor tiles, paint, lockers, doors, cupboards, cabinets, marker boards, and builletin boards. An addition was built that houses a new main office, principal's office, teacher workroom, and freight room. By renovating existing space, three additional classrooms and a conference room were added to the middle school.

The project also funded extensive renovations and expansions at the high school. The "academic wing" of the high school was renovated. New and renovated facilities included a library media center, computer lab, seven additional classrooms, chemistry/physics lab, biology lab, athletic entrance, front entrance, and office space.

In the spring of 2013 the district moved forward with a one-to-one iPad program for the middle school. The one-to-one program will be expanded to the high school in the fall of 2013 with MacBook Airs (laptops).

Today, the students in grades P/K-8 attend classes in the elementary/middle school complex while the high school (9-12) is located in the northeast corner of town. Dows students attend grades P/K-3 at Dows and 4-12 at Clarion. With the recent approval of reorganization, the Dows Elementary School will close and all students will attend classes in Clarion beginning in 2014-15. The Dows facility will still have limited use for athletics and community uses. Additional uses for the facility are being sought.

References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Clarion-goldfield Comm School District". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved 2008-03-24. 
2. ↑ Goldfield Alumni Association

External links

• Clarion-Goldfield Community School District
• Dows Community School District