Since the school levy did not pass, FCS has been forced to go to all measures to save money. The first major measure they took was announcing that Jacobs and Lincoln schools will be closing. The change will save the district at least $1.3 million a year.

“The students and teachers were sad when they discovered that Jacobs was going to be repurposed. Troy Roth, superintendent, and Krista Miller, assistant superintendent, did an amazing job of ensuring that they explained the why behind their difficult decision to the staff at Jacobs. Once the staff understood the why behind the decision, they understood that change is necessary in order to create more equity across the district.” Kelly Wohlgamuth, principal at Jacobs, says.

The students will be dispersed throughout the other Elementary school building. The change is also being made to more evenly distribute the number of low income students at each school.

“The students at Jacobs will attend one of the other schools in the district. The school district is hoping to send letters to each family in March to inform them of the school that each student will be attending next year.” Wohlgamuth explains.

The class sizes will stay under 30 students however.

“Class sizes vary slightly from grade to grade and building to building. For example, we have about 19 students in our first grade classes and 25 in our third grade classes at Jacobs. The classes sizes and sections have fluctuated as students move in and out of Trojan Academy this year. I am not sure what class sizes will be next year; however, I anticipate that they will be somewhere around 20 – 25 students.” says.

Teachers and staff will also be placed throughout the other buildings.

“The teachers are currently completing their intent forms for the next school year. Intent forms are designed to enable the staff to express their wishes for the following school year. For example, they can mark a box that indicates that they wish to remain in the same position for the next school year. They can be specific and write other positions that interest them as well. The staff usually find out their assignments for the following school year in the spring.” Wohlgamuth says.

The district has also announced that while Lincoln will be sold, the future of the Jacobs building is undecided.

“The school district is going to repurpose Jacobs Primary School as the building is in amazing condition and has plenty of green space. The district will use the building for something; however, final decisions have not been made, yet.” says.