ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, March 23, 1996 TAG: 9603250014
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: RADFORD
SOURCE: LISA APPLEGATE STAFF WRITER
Claudia Van Arsdale has withdrawn her name, leaving Chris Harrison, Carter Effler and Roberta Nester to battle it out for the two open seats in the city's first School Board election.
The mother of a kindergartner at McHarg Elementary School, Van Arsdale said Thursday she wanted to bring to light her concern with what she sees as an overcrowding problem in kindergarten classes.
Nancy McMurray, principal of McHarg Elementary, said kindergarten class sizes range from 20 to 22 pupils; at least three lower than the state limit of 25 for each teacher.
Still, Van Arsdale said the half-day kindergarten classes are crowded by tuition pupils who live outside Radford.
Families in surrounding counties can enroll their children in Radford schools, if they pay a yearly tuition fee of $100 for the first child and $75 for each additional child.
That's fine, said Van Arsdale, for high school students who may live closer to Radford than their own county high school. But elementary schools are more evenly dispersed throughout counties, she argued, and families shouldn't be allowed to pay such a minimal fee to overcrowd primary school classes.
"I just think $100 is too cheap," she said.
Schools in the Roanoke Valley also charge a $100 fee to enroll students from other areas, as does Giles County. Pulaski County does not charge tuition.
Generally, tuition students benefit school systems because of the state assistance that comes with each child. For every tuition student Radford accepted this year, for example, the school system received $2,500 in state funds, said Superintendent Michael Wright.
Van Arsdale said that since she announced her candidacy, there's been tension with her friends and the people she volunteers with at the school.
"I have a lot of friends that are tuition parents and it's been very uncomfortable," she said.
She said she has raised the tuition issue with School Board and City Council members, but no one has expressed an interest in changing the present fees.
"I've argued with them before, and I just don't think I would be effective" on the School Board, she said. "I feel like I've made my point now, and [there are] fine people running."
LENGTH: Medium: 53 lines KEYWORDS: POLITICS SCHOOL BOARDby CNB