Newton BOE adopts resolution to close Walton Rural Life Center at end of school year

NEWTON, Kan. (KWCH) - The Newton school board on Monday night narrowly approved a resolution to close Walton Rural Life Center at the end of this school year. The decision passed with the same 4-3 narrow margin last month in which the board voted to begin the process to close the school.

The board’s decisions on the charter school’s closure have been met with opposition and some hoped they’d be able to change the board’s mind after the March 27 meeting.

The high school in Walton closed in 1962. The small Harvey County town’s elementary school survived. but due to declining enrollment, in 2006 the school was converted into an agriculture-oriented charter school.

The kindergarten-through-fourth grade school was the first public elementary school in Kansas to add agriculture to its curriculum. That’s part of the appeal for parents of students