By David Vitrano

L’Observateur

LUTCHER – On May 24, students will attend classes at Romeville Elementary School in Convent for the last time following the St. James Parish School Board’s unanimous vote to close the facility at a meeting Tuesday.

“We’ve been going through this process for about three years so far,” said Superintendent Alonzo Luce. “The recommendation that I’m making to the board is to merge Romeville into Paulina.”

The board followed his recommendation, and in the fall, most of the school’s 88 students will be attending Paulina Elementary. Romeville’s pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students were already moved to Paulina Elementary this school year.

The school board and district administration recently held a community meeting at the school, and although some parents there voiced opposition to closing the school, Luce said over the three years this matter has been discussed, no more than a handful of parents and other community members have been opposed to closing the school. Still, the decision to close Romeville was not an easy one for many involved.

“This is probably one of the hardest decisions I’ve made since I’ve been on the board,” said Board Vice President George Nassar, who attended Romeville. “A lot of the things that did happen are because of demographics more than anything.”

Indeed, the closure is the results of a long slide at the school that once boasted a student population of more than 300. Convent was once the largest community on the east bank of St. James Parish, but in recent years more and more industry has moved into the area and the residential population has shrunk considerably. The low student population along with a failing School Performance Score essentially spelled the end for the school.

At the community meeting, Luce pointed out a school needs to have about 300 students to be fiscally viable. Otherwise the per-student spending is way beyond that of other schools with larger student populations.

The board also voted Tuesday to put the school property up for sale at the appraisal price of around $3 million. That price could change, however, depending on what happens with the school’s new gymnasium, which will remain open for the time being and be used as a community center. Luce said the specifics will have to be worked out, and whether the gymnasium will be included in the purchase or not remains to be seen, but he said as long as there is a community demand to use the gymnasium, it will be there for them.

Most of the faculty from Romeville have been reassigned to Paulina Elementary to accommodate the larger student population, but Romeville Principal Becky Louque will have a special assignment for the upcoming school year. She has been named virtual school principal, effective Aug. 6, 2012.

Luce explained the position was created because five students from St. James Parish chose to attend the online Louisiana Connections Academy this year. He said as a result of this, the state took $13,500 per student away from the district’s funding. Consequently, he said next year the St. James Parish School System will also offer online classes as a way to compete with the statewide virtual school. He said that if students choose to attend the parish’s version of the online academy, not only will the school system be able to keep the funding, but the students will also have access to regular school resources and be eligible to participate in extracurricular activities at the parish’s schools.

Said Louque, “It’s going to be exciting. It’s new. It’s cutting edge. This is the wave of the future. Taking it from birth and moving it forward, that part is exciting.”

Still, she has fond memories of her 4 1/2 years as principal at Romeville.

“It has been a wonderful journey,” she said.

Before Romeville’s final day of classes on May 24, the students and faculty will enjoy a fun day on May 17.