It’s not a new idea to consolidate or merge school districts in Lewis County. Terry Wood, Chehalis, in a letter to the editor a week ago today, suggested that centralization of administrative offices for six local school districts would save money, benefit our community, and help in efforts for bond issues. I think he has a good point, and it’s worth considering. As I mentioned, it’s not something new.

    I’ve done some research into the history of the schools in Lewis County, and in particular the schools in Centralia, since that’s where I taught. At one point, as an itinerant music teacher, I taught in all active Centralia schools, including Bucoda when it was a part of the Centralia School District. Much of what I have found is from the online Centralia School History, and the book “Centralia: First 50 Years.”

    According to the Chehalis Bee-Nugget, in the May 17, 1901, issue, there were 106 school districts in Lewis County. At least 23 of those are now part of the Centralia School District.

    Many were one-room schools. For example: Salzer Valley (which still stands today), Kopiah, Null’s Crossing, three in Hanaford Valley, Zenkner Valley, Gibson (in southern Thurston County), Seminary Hill and others.

They eventually joined the Centralia School District around the 1930s, and became the Centralia Consolidated District No. 212. Further districts banded together, and in 1944, the Centralia School District No. 401 was formed.

    School buildings since then have come and gone. New schools have been built; others were torn down. Earthquakes down through the years have been responsible for schools that no longer exist. Several buildings have been used for other purposes, and others have been sold to private owners. The Galvin School is one example of that process.

    In his letter, Wood mentioned that “centralizing other expenses as in maintenance contracts” would help save money. Part of that idea took place in the spring of 1982 with the Centralia-Chehalis Pupil Transportation Cooperative facility. The Co-op began as a pilot project, partially funded by the state, in an effort to maintain school buses and other vehicles in the Lewis County area. The idea was to operate student transportation at a reduced cost and in a more efficient manner.

    Through the years, the Co-op has had contracts to maintain buses from other school districts, Centralia College, the Twin Cities Senior Center, the State Patrol, and other agencies. I think it’s proven worthwhile.    

    Another concept that has worked well is the Chehalis-Centralia Special Education Cooperative started in 1958. Today it is named the Chehalis-Centralia Student Support Cooperative. (Note the city reversal change from the Transportation Co-op) The Co-op provides remedial and special education in many varied ways and works with all ages. For example, one program provides a community-based vocational and life skills training program,

    The Cooperative provides direct administrative and program support to the Chehalis and Centralia School Districts, as well as serving students from surrounding districts.

    Some other community-based examples of working together are the Centralia-Chehalis Chamber of Commerce, the Centralia-Chehalis Elks Lodge, and the new Riverside Fire Authority. Those mergers seem to have gone quite nicely, and have benefited both groups.

    On the other hand, I remember a few years back when an ad hoc committee was set up to study the idea of uniting the city governments of Centralia and Chehalis. It ended up with accusations of hidden agendas, finger pointing, friends no longer talking to each other, and animosity from both sides. Politics!

    Looking at consolidating communities or school districts would have to be done carefully. It’s worth a thought. I think the largest question would be how to deal with rivalries. Could we still have the annual fall football Battle of the Swamp?

    Paul Crowner, a retired Centralia music educator, can be contacted at PaulCrowner@RainierConnect.com.