Strong-Huttig School District awarded waiver to continue

STRONG — The StrongHuttig School District was approved for a waiver to continue to operate with less than 350 students earlier this month.

To receive this waiver a school district must not be in fiscal, academic distress or facilities distress; or be in violation of any of the state accreditation standards. Strong-Huttig is in compliance with all of the above.

Addressing the issue of not being in fiscal distress, the Arkansas Department of Education Coordinator of Fiscal Support Cynthia Smith said, “Strong is amazing at what they have done with their finances. They are being very frugal with their expenditures.”

Superintendent Jeff Alphin complimented the accounting, food service and maintenance departments for their efforts.

“It takes good leadership, it takes support from the communities, it takes good boards to manage and lead in tough situations,” Commissioner Johnny Key said.

Alphin attributes part of this success to the fact that the majority of the staff members returned for the 2017-2018 year which stabilized the learning environment.

“I didn’t want us to get by without us recognizing the growth that your students did, and I know that’s a lot of work on behalf of your staff, your teachers, and your students,” state board member Ouida Newton said.

During the summer, improvements were made by upgrading the fire alarm systems, renovating the cafeterias, and replacing or upgrading the roofs on several buildings in the district.

“We need our schools to be and look their best to attract students to the district,” Alphin said.

State Rep. Sonia Barker, R-Smackover, and Sen. Trent Garner, R-El Dorado, attended the hearing to affirm the district’s need and success.

“This is a community that is invested, that cares, and loves its schools, and they will fight every single day to meet all the requirements and make it successful in the future,” Garner said.

Alphin said that he wants to thank the Strong-Huttig communities for believing in the schools and supporting the district.

He said, “We plan on being here for years to come.”