The St. Louis County School Board said this week that they'll leave it to neighboring school districts to figure out how to educate young people in our communities should voters reject their proposed school restructuring plan.

The board's position, which points to dissolution of the district as the response to a no vote on the upcoming referendum, is not just irresponsible, it runs directly counter to the wishes expressed by the public in the district's recent survey.

While that survey had its problems (as we've previously noted), the public's view of dissolution couldn't be clearer. Fully 83 percent called it a bad idea, while just 10 percent voiced support for it.

And this is a school board that claims to be listening to the people?

The fact is, the board does have viable alternatives to dissolution, but they appear to believe that if they don't mention them, we won't figure that out and will support their plan out of fear of the alternative. But that's no way to sell a referendum, in part because people up here generally do a pretty good job of seeing through this kind of nonsense. In the end, threats of dissolution simply undermine the board's credibility, further weakening their case to the public.

So what's a credible Plan B? When asked, 64 percent of the respondents to the district's own survey called consolidating to five schools a good idea. True, the question was asked in a leading way, but even so, given a list of options, this one probably makes the most sense. Yet nothing in the question suggests building new schools. A common sense reading of the question points to closing two of the district's existing K-12 facilities and keeping the remaining five open. That seems to be what most residents of the district support.

While we don't know which schools the district might close, there are pretty clear arguments to suggest that the two smallest, Cotton and Orr, would be first on the chopping block. While that clearly won't be popular in those communities, this outcome isn't much different for Orr than the district's current restructuring plan, which calls for building a new school 4.8 miles north of Cook. It's tough to argue that an extra five minutes on the bus is really going to be a make or break issue for residents of Orr. The community is going to take a hit either way, which is one reason support for the district's plan appears to have dropped in the area.

While it's possible that some parents from the Orr area will decide to homeschool their children or seek to form a charter school, those discussions are already taking place given the board's decision to place the proposed new school so close to Cook.

No one can credibly say that any fewer students will choose to come to the existing Cook School than would come to a new school north of Cook. While it's reasonable to suggest the district might lose a few more students from Orr, the more southerly location might just keep more of the students who live south of town in the district. That new four lane highway to Virginia, after all, makes the Virginia Schools a more viable option for students in Angora and Alango than it used to be.

As we've reported on a number of occasions, the district can achieve the vast majority of the savings it projects from its restructuring plan without new buildings. About 80 percent of the savings come from staff reductions and those can be achieved whether buildings are old or new. In addition, most of the operational savings can be achieved as well, since the district won't have to heat or maintain two of its buildings.

If the district needs additional savings, it should look to its remaining employees. While I'm all for paying people well, if available funding can't support the district's salary structure and benefit packages, it's time to take action.

Most of us in the private sector don't get automatic pay raises year after year, especially during tough economic times. Most are making less today than they were five years ago, and almost every private sector employee in our area is paying far more for their health coverage, if they have it at all. Asking those folks to dig deeper in their pockets so district employees can continue to enjoy regular pay raises and excellent benefits, is a tough argument, and is one reason the district has been unable to pass an operating levy.

Employee wages and benefits make up three-quarters of the district's expenses. If the district can't pay the bills, that's a good place to start.

In the end, the board needs to be open and honest about the future, and quit playing games. If they won't deal honestly with us about a realistic Plan B, how credible are any of their claims?