Like most businesses and government agencies, the Marysville School District is seeing a lot more red these days.

"For the past few years, we've been asked by the state to cut between $1.2 million and $1.7 million from our budgets," superintendent Larry Nyland told a group of about 65 parents, staff and citizens at a February 3 Town Hall meeting. "Next year that figure will go up to $3.3 million, and could be even higher."

In fact, for the current school year the district has already been informed that the state will be unable to fulfill $250,000 of its annual obligation.

To deal with the funding loss, the district has been forced to consider some unpopular options, including the possible closure or merger of several elementary schools and shutting down the Marysville high school pool.

While several elementary schools are in dire need of repairs and updating, Dr. Nyland said the district might close schools "because of the cost of operating them, not because of building needs."

He explained to the crowd that deciding on a school closure was a lengthy and diligent process. The proposal is subject to an extensive 8-part cost-benefit analysis that considers a variety of factors. If analysts recommend closing the building, the public is notified and given a 90-day period to comment. Finally, the School Board would receive all the data collected and make the ultimate decision. In the current situation, the earliest any school might close would be the 2010-2011 school year.

Many of the elementary schools in the district are being considered for closure or combination with other programs. Liberty, Cascade, Quil Ceda and Tulalip elementaries are all on the table, along with the Co-Op program that is currently housed at Quil Ceda Elementary.

The cost of operating an elementary school is figured at approximately $400,000 per year, with that figure including administrative staff, heat and janitorial services. Teacher salaries are not included in any cost savings, as the district would still be serving the same amount of students, requiring the same number of teachers.

Responding to comments that criticized the opening of the new Grove Elementary while considering school closures, Dr. Nyland explained that funding for Grove's construction was provided in the 2006 bond passage. "The timing is unfortunate," he said, "but there was certainly no intention to close any other schools at the time Grove was planned."

The district had predicted a typical growth rate of 2 percent per year, but since 2006 enrollment has actually declined by about 1 percent per year. That drop in enrollment is accompanied by reductions in state and federal funding.

Liberty Elementary, located at 1919-10th Street NE, is one of Marysville's oldest school buildings. Built in 1951, the school serves a lower-income population than many other neighborhood schools. 73 percent of Liberty's students qualify for the free or reduced lunch program, compared to 35 percent district-wide. The families served by Liberty live mostly in nearby apartment complexes and student turnover rates are high.

Staff members and parents from the school accused the district of "punishing low-income students by pushing them to the outskirts of town," and "making our kids pawns for the financial gains of the district."

School planners flatly deny any impetus to close Liberty due to its poorer population. In fact, its value as a walkable community center and supportive learning environment for high needs children is touted in planning documents.

Several community members also spoke out against closing the Marysville-Pilchuck swimming pool. Besides its importance to the school's swim teams, the pool is used daily by community members and is the site of free family swim nights hosted by the Marysville Parks and Recreation Department.

A community group, the Marysville Pool Action Committee, has been formed to work with the district to find solutions to help keep the pool open, structuring its revenue to cover operational expenses. Dr. Nyland is optimistic about the community group, and said the district is also in discussions with the City of Marysville regarding a partnership for operation of the pool.

"Those discussions are not well-developed," said Nyland, "and it's much too early to know if there are any benefits to be discovered."

Building a new indoor pool facility to replace the aging facility would cost between $8 and $17 million, and those figures are also one part of the funding equation facing the district.

Other parent complaints voiced at the meeting concerned the SLCs (smaller learning communities) at M-PHS and the new Getchell High School. Because students must choose a learning "pathway" when entering 9th grade, participation in school athletics may be limited, especially for students in the SLCs that will be moving to Getchell in 2010.

Assistant superintendent Gail Miller said the district plans to complete a comprehensive student survey this spring to measure the effectiveness and popularity of the SLC concept.

A Citizens Planning Commission (CPC), made up primarily of parents from each school in the district, has been meeting for nearly a year to come up with recommendations for the long-term needs of the district's students. The panel's suggestions will form the basis of a 2010 bond request for capital projects.

The CPC meets every two weeks at 6:30 p.m. in the School District Service Center, located at 4220-80th Dr. NE, including a meeting February 12 and 26 this month. The public is invited to attend.