Small cohorts force Mill A School District program to weigh asking college instructors to teach one 8th‑grade section

The Mill A School District board convened a budget workshop centered on enrollment pressures at the district’s STEM‑focused program, PCIA, and options for aligning staffing to a smaller‑than‑expected student body.

Kelly, who led the enrollment presentation, told the board that current district counts show about 12 students in kindergarten–grade 2, 14 in grades 3–5 and 11 in grades 6–8. She said PCIA has two confirmed seniors and a small number of upper‑grade students, leaving some college‑level courses underenrolled and teachers with multiple unscheduled 50‑minute periods in their day. Those unscheduled periods, staff estimated, amount to roughly 14 open periods per full day; without reassigning teaching duties that translates into what staff calculated as about $122,000 annually in paid time that does not directly deliver classroom instruction.

The board discussed options intended to keep instructors at or near full‑time while increasing instructional minutes for students. One favored, voluntary approach would be to have secondary instructors teach at most one additional eighth‑grade section within their existing endorsement (grades 6–12) to reduce the number of open periods. Supporters said that would add instructional hours for younger students, help build a K–12 pipeline into PCIA and preserve teacher FTE. Several board members also suggested using part of any remaining open periods for outreach, internships, or partner activities that could recruit future students.

During the public comment period an unnamed PCIA instructor urged caution. The instructor said asking college‑level instructors to "add middle school courses is not a good use of our expertise," calling such a requirement outside their hiring expectations and a threat to the program’s college‑level offerings. The board acknowledged that concern and emphasized that any change should be voluntary and preserve staff stability.

Board members noted that scheduling remains complicated: college‑level offerings require prerequisites and cannot easily be compressed to accommodate both small cohorts and broad course variety. They also highlighted student welfare concerns, citing prior instances of burnout when students carried heavy loads of college classes. The discussion repeatedly returned to recruiting more freshmen and eighth‑grade pipeline work — including summer STEAM camps and targeted outreach to local Mille School students — as a more sustainable long‑term solution.

No formal motion or vote was taken. The board asked staff to continue exploring voluntary eighth‑grade sections, to survey instructor willingness, and to develop concrete proposals that would protect full‑time employment status. Staff will return with scheduling options and updated projections at the June budget workshops.