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Penn Cambria To Consolidate School Buildings

A Cambria County school district will be permanently closing one of its buildings at the end of this school year.

Penn Cambria School District is in the process of consolidating its buildings, according to the district’s superintendent.

School officials say the district is officially closing a lower level school that only holds two grades, but if things go according to plan, multiple other schools in the district will likely be joining in the consolidation.

Penn Cambria Primary School, in Lilly, will only be in operation for a few more months after a unanimous school board vote on Wednesday night.

Penn Cambria Primary is one of five schools currently in the district, with buildings in three different locations: Cresson, Lilly, and Gallitzin.

“It would be similar to a family having several homes. You’re paying those bills annually. Now with the declining enrollment here at Penn Cambria, it’s now seen as beneficial to not have that many buildings,”

Superintendent Jamie Hartline says the district conducted a feasibility study leading up to the decision.

“That study looked at everything from a staffing standpoint to the building structure, to cost and benefits of leaving buildings opened or closed.”

Hartline says there was enough room in other schools, and closing the primary school could save the district more than $100,000 a year.

He says with the district’s current setup, there is also a convenience issue.

“Some of our parents have three or four children in a district and they could be spread across three or four different buildings.”

He says that’s why the school has larger goals with the project, known locally as 12-A.

“it’s a plan that puts all of our students on one campus, and unfortunately to do that, that is going to involve some building closures.”

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