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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 7, 2005 School supporters push Ruch options By ANITA BURKE Mail Tribune Ruch Elementary School supporters hope to boost enrollment at the little rural school by offering supplementary classes for homeschoolers this spring and a seventh- and eighth-grade program in the fall. The Medford school board gave preliminary approval Tuesday to the two proposals community members devised to keep the school viable. The Ruch community rallied when district officials looking to save money considered closing the school, where enrollment has declined sharply in recent years. Upon seeing strong support, officials decided to keep the school open another year to give the community a chance to draw additional students. After a series of meetings, Ruch residents decided the school could attract students — and the state revenue that is allocated to schools based on enrollment — by offering help for the area’s homeschoolers and a middle school alternative. "This seems to go the way we wanted in Ruch," board member Joe Frodsham said of the proposals. Advertisement The board authorized Ruch to start a pilot program for homeschool students this month with Rogue Education and Development (READ) Institute, a private, nonprofit homeschool-support program in Central Point. The institute, which has served students in Jackson and Josephine counties since 1995, contracts with school districts to provide classes for homeschoolers, director Rose Cossairt said. Districts receive state funding for these students, then pass 80 percent of that money on to the institute and keep the rest. The Medford district agreed to pay up to $7,833 for math, science, language arts, social studies, foreign language and art classes taught by the institute’s contracted teachers in Ruch this spring, said Phil Long, director of curriculum and elementary education and the district’s next superintendent. Classes should start next week. "We have quite a few homeschoolers here," said Karen Salant, a Ruch resident and school volunteer. "We want to do a site-based outreach program that would provide access to the gym, the playground, the music room and other resources." She estimated 15 to 24 students might participate in the program. Supporters hope to attract at least 22 additional students to a combined seventh- and eighth-grade class in the fall. They want to focus on students who would otherwise leave public school instead of attend a large middle school. Salant, whose daughter Carly is a sixth-grader, said about two-thirds of 23 parents surveyed in November supported a choice to let their sixth-graders remain at Ruch two more years instead of going to McLoughlin Middle School. "We must have a critical mass, but schools have done this for years," Salant said, referring to kindergarten through eighth grade taught at one location. The district has agreed to hire a teacher for the core subjects for the combined class. Volunteers would offer an array of electives that could be expanded to an after-school program for all grade levels and homeschoolers, Salant said. "We want to enrich the entire program," she said. "If we can provide quality education, we justify our existence." Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4485, or e-mail [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker dvd-r Distance Education Computer Security Ztech Media Hosting Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Student Loans tcg student loan consolidation Online Pharmacy online casino Myspace Home Equity Loans Windermere Van Vleet Rogue Valley Travel Reservationstogo Hotel Reservations Southern Oregon Loans Online Casino News Natto Kinase Nattokinase Casino Gambling Sites Budget Website Templates Investments & Loans Advertisement s