LITTLE ROCK — A U.S. District Court judge dismissed the U.S. Department of Agriculture from a lawsuit that challenges the state-ordered merger of the Weiner School District on Tuesday.
Judge James M. Moody granted the department’s request for dismissal, saying it was an “involuntary plaintiff” in the case.
The Arkansas Board of Education voted on March 8 to merge Weiner School District with the neighboring Harrisburg School District because Weiner’s enrollment fell below the state law-required 350-student mark.
The Friends of Weiner School District filed a June 30 motion asking the district be preserved, in part, because merging the district would do away with farm jobs. They included the U.S. Department of Agriculture as a plaintiff because, said attorney Kim Kelley of Heber Springs, the department noted the importance of rural schools in a strategic plan it developed for 2010-2015.
The plan said the department was working to enhance the livability of rural communities and wanted to rebuild infrastructures so “rural residents could have critical community facilities ... including schools.”
Kelley said Tuesday afternoon the addition of the department was a “strong point” of the Friends of Weiner’s case.
“Communities are aware of their farm crops,” she said. “But if you don’t have anyone keeping the crops safe, you’ll lose that.
“You destroy the community by destroying its schools,” Kelley said. “You can’t get it back. This is not just about Weiner, this is what we need to do for Arkansas.”
Arkansas, Pages 15 on 09/22/2010