A court settlement last month halted efforts to vote on consolidation between the Mingus Union High School District and the Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District this November, with the pro and anti-consolidation sides agreeing to allow for a future election on the issue after a new petition drive.
That new petition drive will soon have the go-ahead to begin, after lawyers for both the pro-consolidation Committee for Better Upper Verde Valley Schools and MUHSD agreed on language for the coming petition. The full agreed upon petition language reads as follows:
“Pursuant to Arizona Revised Statutes § 15-459(B)(7), I, the undersigned, a qualified elector [regardless of party affiliation] of the county of Yavapai, state of Arizona, and of Mingus Union High School District #4 [which is made up of Clarkdale-Jerome School District #3 and CottonwoodOak Creek School District #6], hereby respectfully request that the County School Superintendent call an election on ___, 20__ to consolidate Mingus Union High School District #4 and Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District #6 into a new unified school district, and further declare that I am qualified to vote in the proposed election for the purpose of consolidating public school districts. I further declare that if I choose to use a post office box address on this petition, my residence address has not changed since I last reported it to the county recorder for purposes of updating my voter registration file.”
In last month’s lawsuit, attorneys representing the MUHSD Governing Board and other anti-consolidation activists took issue with the language of the previous petition suggesting cost savings coming from consolidation that they argued were unfounded. The new language has stripped away any claims of financial benefits to the school districts and only specifies the plan for an election.
In addition to agreeing on language for the new petition drive, the parties agreed that the next consolidation push must set a date for an election to coincide with a November general election, as opposed to calling a special election at a different time of year.
The soonest date for such a vote would be November 2019.
James Ledbetter, a member of the MUHSD Governing board who has been a leading voice against consolidation, said the negotiations were turbulent but remained professional, and that he believes the parties are making good progress.
“It’s been frustrating at times for everyone including [Yavapai Superior Court] Judge [David] Mackey,” Ledbetter said. Mackey is presiding over the lawsuit and the ongoing negotiation over the settlement. “But with issues as big as this and what’s at stake, I think that makes sense.”
The official consolidation language still must be approved by the MUHSD Governing Board before it can be finalized. The board scheduled a special meeting Tuesday, Sept. 25, to discuss and vote on the language. Results of that meeting were unavailable at press time.
Representatives of the Committee for Better Upper Verde Valley Schools did not return requests for comment by press time.
Jon Hecht can be reached at 634-8551, or email jhecht@larsonnewspapers.com
