Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn Community School District Explained

41.6629°N -92.0188°W

Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn Community School District
Type:Local school district
Grades:K-12
Location:Marcus, Iowa
Region:Cherokee County and Plymouth County
Country:United States
Coordinates:41.662855, -92.018800
Superintendent:Dan Barkel
Schools:2
Budget:$7,358,000 (2020-21)[1]
Us Nces District Id:1918630
Students:386 (2022-23)
Teachers:39.32 FTE
Staff:38.27 FTE
Ratio:9.82
Conference:War Eagle
Mascot:Royals
Colors:Blue and White

Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn Community School District (MMC) is a rural public school district headquartered in Marcus, Iowa. The district under the name, "MMCRU Schools", operates an elementary and high school in Marcus, while the Remsen Union Community School District operates an elementary school and a middle school in Remsen.[2]

Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn is mostly in Cherokee County with a portion in Plymouth County. It serves Marcus, Meriden, and Cleghorn.[3]

History

The district formed on July 1, 1993, as a result of the merger of the Marcus and Meriden-Cleghorn school districts.[4]

The district inherited the Cleghorn School, which first opened in 1920. By 2015 the school had 90 students in grades 4–6. In 2015 the district voted to close the school in order to have a yearly savings of $130,000. Students were redirected to Marcus.[5]

Circa 2014, the MMC and RU districts began negotiating over a grade-sharing agreement, but the talks ended in 2014 by mutual agreement. The two districts prepared for budget cuts. Greg Forbes of the Sioux City Journal wrote that "Residents of both districts have lobbied to keep their respective high schools."[6] The two districts reached out to other potential grade-sharing parties in the meantime. By June 2015 the MMC and RU districts resumed talks,[7] and the districts ultimately reached an agreement regarding the grade sharing.[8]

In 2016 the districts began grade-sharing, and the two together operate under the name "MMCRU Schools".[9] The "Royals" were the chosen mascot.[10] As part of the arrangement, both districts have their own elementary schools, with RU having a combined middle school and MMC with the combined high school. Breeanna Pearce of the Le Mars Daily Sentinel wrote that "Initially, the program met with some harsh criticism", and that there were fewer administrators, but that due to a successfully merging of operations, "MMCRU continues to gather support."[11] The MMCRU is not yet legally a district.

Schools

The district formerly operated its own elementary, middle, and high school.[12]

MMRCU High School

Athletics

The Royals compete in the following sports in the War Eagle Conference:[13]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn Comm School District . . July 4, 2024.
  2. Web site: Home. MMCRU Schools. 2020-03-26. MMCRU Marcus Elementary MMCRU High School 400 E. Fenton St. PO Box 667 Marcus, IA 51035 [...] MMCRU Remsen Elementary MMCRU Middle School 511 Roosevelt St. Remsen, IA 51050.
  3. Web site: Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn. Iowa Department of Education. 2020-03-26.
  4. Web site: REORGANIZATION & DISSOLUTION ACTIONS SINCE 1965-66. https://web.archive.org/web/20190209124738/https://www.educateiowa.gov/sites/files/ed/documents/District%20Reorganization%20History%20final.pdf. dead. 2019-02-09. Iowa Department of Education. 2020-03-22.
  5. Web site: Gallagher, Tim. GALLAGHER: Iowa school that beat flu, fire, plane crash can't stave off enrollment decline . Sioux City Journal. 2015-04-29. 2020-03-26. - The article says Marcus merged with Meriden-Cleghorn in 1996, but the actual school district merger according to the Iowa Department of Education occurred in 1993.
  6. Web site: Remsen, Marcus schools prepare for cuts after tabling sharing agreement . Sioux City Journal. 2014-11-18. 2020-03-26.
  7. Web site: Forbes, Greg. Remsen-Union, Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn to resume whole grade sharing talks. Sioux City Journal. 2015-06-03. 2020-03-26 .
  8. Web site: Erickson, Amy. Studying Together - R-U, MMC agree to whole grade sharing - UPDATE. Le Mars Sentinel. 2015-06-04. 2020-03-26.
  9. Web site: Our District. MMCRU Schools. 2020-03-26.
  10. Web site: Forbes, Greg. Western Iowa school districts joining under grade sharing decide name and mascot . Sioux City Journal. 2015-11-12. 2020-03-26.
  11. Web site: Pearce, Breeanna. MMCRU: Two and a half years later Is whole-grade sharing working?. Le Mars Daily Sentinel. 2019-01-03. 2020-03-26.
  12. Web site: Home. https://web.archive.org/web/20051228110707/http://www.marcus-mer-cleg.k12.ia.us/. dead. 2005-12-28. Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn Community School District. 2005-12-28.
  13. Web site: War Eagle Conference. War Eagle Conference. 2020-08-28.