IMBLER – The Imbler School Board took a historic step Tuesday.

The board voted unanimously to have the Imbler School District become a charter system.

The move was taken to help the district in the wake of financial problems created by falling enrollment.

“This is in the best interest of the school district and the kids to keep up the quality of the school district, its staff and its programs,” Imbler Board Chairwoman Pam Glenn said.

District officials will now begin preparing bylaws for charter status. The bylaws will have to be approved by the school board and the Oregon Department of Education. Once the bylaws are approved by the state, Imbler will become a certified charter system.

Superintendent Doug Hislop hopes to have Imbler’s charter system status in place before the start of the 2008-09 school year.

Charter systems are publicly funded school districts that have been freed of some state and federal regulations that apply to public schools.

The Imbler district is seeking charter status because its enrollment is projected to fall by 40 students to a total of 300 in 2008-09. The decline would cost Imbler between $250,000 and $300,000 because districts receive about $6,400 per student from the the state.

Charter status would have a big impact on Imbler’s budget because it would make it easier for it to continue getting transfer students. It is easy for students to transfer to a charter system from a regular school district and equally easy to transfer out. Students in outside districts do not need permission from their districts to transfer to a charter system. On the flip side, students attending a charter system do not need permission to leave.

Should past history be any indication, Imbler will have no trouble gaining charter system status. Fossil and Ione, school districts similar to Imbler, gained charter status with little difficulty over the past three years.

Imbler representatives recently visited the Ione and Fossil districts to see first hand the pros and cons of becoming a charter system.

“Everyone had nothing but great things to say about it,” said Imbler School Board member Wade Bingaman. “We asked everyone we talked to if there is a down side and they said there is not. They said they have also been asking themselves the same question.”

Walt Sullivan of Summerville fears there is a down side. He told the school board before its vote he has reservations about Imbler’s step. One is that the charter law requires that only 50 percent of the teachers in a charter district must be certified. In standard school districts all teachers must be certified.

Sullivan said that years from now when the Imbler district is replacing teachers who are retiring it will be tempting for it to hire some who are not certified since they would have to be paid less.

“When you are pinched for money, non-certified teachers will look a whole lot better,” Sullivan said.

Hislop responded by saying that a charter district has great incentive to maintain high standards and have only certified teachers. The reason is that students in a charter district are free to transfer at any time without approval from school officials. A charter district that does not maintain high standards thus runs the risk of losing students.

Sullivan, saying he is playing the role of the devil’s advocate, is also concerned that many assume Imbler will receive a large grant from the government if it becomes a charter district. He said that it is not prudent to depend on government grant money since it can disappear at any time.

“That scares me a little,” Sullivan said.

Bingaman said that Imbler’s pursuit of charter status is not about grants. He noted that Ione has not received any charter grants, yet its move to charter status has benefited it.

Hislop said that he will not be putting together Imbler’s 2008-09 budget based on the assumption that it will receive a charter grant. He said that the biggest reason Imbler will pursue charter status is that it will help it keep its students.

“I will not put my budget together based on grants,” Hislop said.

Should Imbler receive a charter grant, the benefit would be substantial. Charter grants provide $1,000 per student plus $125,000.

Curt Howell of La Grande, the father of a son in the Imbler district, commended the board after its charter vote Tuesday.

“This is a very positive thing,” he said. “It is rather historic. Great things will happen.”