Case presented for keeping David L. Rahn Junior High School open

The David L. Rahn Junior High is in “sound shape” for a structure built in the early 1950s and can still serve as a “viable educational facility”.

That was part of a letter from the Rockford architect who was cited during Monday’s presentation to the Oregon School Board by an advisory committee” formed 60 days ago in response to a proposal to close the school in Mt. Morris.

Rob Urish, a member of the committee, offered a preview of the 90-minute presentation by saying it would offer counter points to the rationale made by Oregon Superintendent Tom Mahoney to close the school at the end of the 2021-22 school year and move 7th and 8th grade students to the Oregon High School, located 5 miles to the east.

“During the course of our presentation we will show conclusively that the cost to upgrade DLR, in the context of an approximately $15 million operating budget, and multi-million dollar Health Life Safety bonds is minimal, some would even say ‘trivial’, " Urish said in a written statement. “That the financial impact of continuing to operate DLR in place is not only sustainable, but there is no evidence to suggest that it is not indefinitely sustainable.”

Urish said a study commissioned by Mahoney in 2020 was incomplete.

“While the experts certainly have credible qualifications, the focus of their study was narrow, even superficial at times, as it failed to adequately consider changes in EAV, DLR condition, student experience, community impact, and the like,” he said. “And lastly, Student Experience goes farther and deeper than implied in the rationale statement.”

Mahoney said it took him 3 years to come to the conclusion to recommend closing the 66-year-old school. He said the building needs $6 million in repairs and is costing the district’s budget about $400,000 a year.

He said other measures to cut spending over the last 5 years have already been undertaken, including cutting the teaching staff 14% and the administrative staff 28%.

He also said the most recent setback for the district was the results of the state-required 10-year Health, Life, Safety survey of the district buildings that concluded nearly $6 million in state-mandated improvements are needed, including asbestos removal, at DLR. The school district could issue bonds to pay for the work, which would then be passed on to taxpayers as debt-service, Mahoney said.

Uris said copies of the committee’s presentation will be available at the Mt. Morris Village’s website, http://mtmorrisil.net.