Benton Community School District

The Benton Community School District, or Benton Community, is a rural public school district headquartered in Van Horne, Iowa.[2]

Benton Community School District
Location
Atkins, Newhall, Norway, Watkins, Van Horne, Keystone, Elberon, Blairstown
Benton, Iowa and Tama counties

United States
Coordinates42.010319, -92.086204
District information
TypeLocal school district
MottoQuality Education for a Lifetime of Learning
GradesK-12
SuperintendentDr. Pamela Ewell
Asst. Superintendent(s)Doug Embray, Dr. James Bieschke
SchoolsAtkins Elementary School, Keystone Elementary, Norway Intermediate, Benton Community Middle School/High School
Budget$15,696,000 (2015-16)[1]
NCES District ID1904830 (2018-19) [1]
Students and staff
Students1619 [1]
Teachers101.44 FTE [1]
Staff107.56 FTE [1]
Student–teacher ratio15.96 [1]
Athletic conferenceWaMaC Conference
District mascotBobcats
ColorsBlue and Yellow          
Other information
Websitewww.benton.k12.ia.us

The district is mostly in Benton County with portions in Iowa and Tama counties. It comprises seven rural municipalities: Van Horne, Atkins, Blairstown, Elberon, Keystone, Newhall, and Norway.[3] It also serves Watkins;[4] additional students come from Marengo, and Garrison.

Dr. Pamela Ewell was hired as superintendent in 2019, after previous positions as superintendent at Mount Vernon and Van Buren County Schools.[5][6]

History

A consolidated school board from Keystone, Van Horne, Newhall and Blairstown met from 1962 to 1964 for the planning of the consolidated BCSD, which was officially formed in July 1964.[7]

The Norway school district merged into the Benton district on July 1, 1995.[8] The schools themselves consolidated earlier in a grade-sharing arrangement in the fall of 1991. From this consolidation, the movie The Final Season portrayed the final state title of the Norway High School baseball team.

Schools

Benton Community elementaries (Preschool through sixth grades) are located in: Atkins, Keystone, and Norway. The Junior High (Seventh and Eighth grades) is in Van Horne and attached is the High School (Ninth through Twelfth grades).

The High School, which houses an average enrollment of 450 students, offers many classes with the option of many extracurricular activities.

Fine arts

The band program includes marching band, concert band, pep band, and jazz band. The choir program, especially the show choir, is one of the top 3A show choirs in the state of Iowa. The show choirs are Illusions, the Junior High group; Jubilation Incorporated, the Junior-Varsity group; and Celebration Company, the Varsity group. Other choirs include concert choir, mixed choir, chamber choir, and the Madrigal choir.

Concerts include Holiday and Spring JAVA, which are variety shows containing individual and small groups, plus performances from our show choirs, concert band, and jazz band. The Madrigal choir performs at a dinner shortly before Christmas, where the choir sings over a dinner, a cappella, that is, without a piano accompanying them. The show choir and marching band perform at a variety of competitions throughout the year. The concert band, concert choir, and mixed choir all perform at concerts at different points in the year as well.

Athletics

The Bobcats field teams in football, cross country, volleyball, wrestling, basketball, golf, baseball, track and field, softball, and soccer.[9] Benton Community athletic programs are part the WaMaC Conference.

State Championships
  • Girls' Cross Country - 1998, 1999, 2000[10]
  • Girls' Track and Field - 1997, 2007, 2008[11]
  • Softball - 1966, 1998, 2016[12]
  • Baseball - 1971[13]

Groups and Clubs

Art Club, FCCLA, FFA, HSA (Health Science Academy), individual and group Speech, Spanish Club, Journalism, Yearbook, SADD, and Robotics

Honors

National Honor Society, Silver Cord, honor rolls

Transportation

Multiple bus systems transport students to and from their hometowns to their respective schools.

Notable alumni



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References
  1. "Benton Comm School District". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
  2. "Home". Benton Community School District. Retrieved 2020-03-27. Benton Community Schools Central Office 304 1st Street Van Horne, Iowa 52346
  3. "Benton" (PDF). Iowa Department of Education. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
  4. "Booklet 2019-2020" (PDF). Benton Community School District. p. 4/24. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
  5. Jim Morrison (2019-08-19). "New Benton Community superintendent loves education". Vinton Newspapers. Retrieved 2020-07-27.
  6. "Ewell resigns as Mount Vernon superintendent". The Gazette. 2013-04-22. Retrieved 2020-07-27.
  7. "Record Transfer Completes S.Benton Organization". Cedar Valley Daily Times. July 10, 1964.
  8. "REORGANIZATION & DISSOLUTION ACTIONS SINCE 1965-66" (PDF). Iowa Department of Education. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-02-09. Retrieved 2020-03-22.
  9. "WaMaC Conference". WaMaC Conference. Retrieved 2020-07-24.
  10. [https://sites.google.com/site/iahsaasports/iowa-high-schools/current-high-schools/benton-community Iowa High School Sports}
  11. "Track Record Book" (PDF). Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union. Retrieved 2020-07-03.
  12. "State Softball Record Book" (PDF). Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union. Retrieved 2020-07-03.
  13. "2020 BASEBALLSTATE TOURNAMENT STAT BOOK" (PDF). Iowa High School Athletic Association. Retrieved 2020-07-03.
  14. Lieber, Jill (July 13, 1992). "A New Blue Yonder". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
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