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<p>Save Our Schools, a group of persistent critics of Wilkes-Barre Area School Board&#8217;s high school consolidation plan, finalized a complaint with the Pennsylvania Department of Education asking the state to step in.</p><p>Citing a litany of criticisms SOS members have brought before the school board in past months&#8212; from the proposed school being too big to inadequate planning and analysis throughout the project &#8212; the complaint asks the state to review the project, offer advice, hold hearings and subpoena witness, investigate actions taken by the school board and require a locally appointed advisory committee to submit a report on any school siting decisions.</p><p>In an email, Save Our Schools President Richard Holodick said the group unanimously voted at a meeting Tuesday to submit the complaint to the state Department of Education. The complaint was finalized Wednesday by attorney Kimberley Borland, who has worked in conjunction with SOS and independently in questioning the consolidation plan.</p><p>That plan, approved by the board in June 2015, calls for consolidation of grades 9 through 12 at Meyers and Coughlin High Schools into a new building, while expanding Kistler Elementary to hold grades seven and eight from Meyers.</p><p>The board had planned to build the new high school where Coughlin stands, but the Wilkes-Barre Zoning Hearing Board rejected a request for a needed variance. The Kistler expansion was also put on hold as zoning clearance for that work is being challenged in court.</p><p>Since its inception following the vote to consolidate, SOS has insisted on two central points: It is not a &#8220;save Meyers&#8221; movement, and it does not want to be an adversary to the board. But members have relentlessly questioned many board decisions, and urged the district to maintain a system of three neighborhood high schools, even if Coughlin and Meyers are closed.</p><p>Board plans do not include any changes at GAR Memorial, a fact the complaint points out as another flaw, arguing GAR has the largest percentage of poor and minority students among the three high schools, and that even under the current system they &#8220;have fewer educational resources&#8221; than students in the other two schools.</p><p>That and nearly every other accusation in the complaint are repeats of criticism leveled at the board ever since the consolidation vote. The complaint cites the contention that a consolidated school will increase transportation costs and devalue properties in South Wilkes-Barre once Meyers is closed.</p><p>It also argues the district moved forward with the consolidation plan without exploring all options, without getting a second opinion on the estimated $113 million cost to repair Meyers, and without having a fully-formed plan, citing the rejection of the zoning variance as the most recent proof.</p><p>The complaint is filed &#8220;pursuant&#8221; to Pennsylvania Statutes Title 24, which outlines rights and responsibilities of the Pennsylvania Department of Education related to construction of public school buildings.</p><p>That statute authorizes PDE to &#8220;receive and investigate complaints from the public or other sources concerning any school building construction or reconstruction project.&#8221;</p><p>It also authorizes PDE to do everything the complaint requests. Along with reviewing the project and offering advice to the district, SOS asks PDE to:</p><p>&#8226; Hold hearings, subpoena witnesses and compel production of documents</p><p>&#8226; Investigate actions taken by the school board concerning the construction project</p><p>&#8226; &#8220;Employ engineers, architects, financial advisers and such other staff personnel as may be necessary&#8221; to fulfill PDE duties related to the project</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_Borland-Kim-5.jpeg">
<div class="neCaption">Kim Borland</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_Borland-Kim-5.jpeg</photo0><caption0>Kim Borland</caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_holodick-richard-2-5.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Richard Holodick, representative of Save Our Schools in Wilkes-Barre. (Pete G. Wilcox|Times Leader)</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_holodick-richard-2-5.jpg</photo1><caption1>Richard Holodick, representative of Save Our Schools in Wilkes-Barre. (Pete G. Wilcox|Times Leader)</caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mark Guydish</p><p>mguydish@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish</p></shirttailMeta></div>

SOS files complaint with state over Wilkes-Barre Area high school plans