[Editor's Note: See end of article for 2/20/09 update]

Conserve School, the environmental academy in Land O’Lakes, is about to undergo a radical change. Tomorrow, Headmaster Stefan Anderson will meet with parents to deal with their concerns over what the school is calling a two-year transition, going from a four-year school to a “semester school.”

Conserve officials announced on Jan. 30 that the school’s current enrollment of 145 students will be reduced to 30 to 45 by next fall, and more than two dozen staff will be let go. Juniors will be allowed to attend as seniors next year, and Sophomores can attend if there are enough spots left over, but freshmen will have to seek other alternatives. By fall 2010, the school will offer a program of one semester to high school juniors.

Parents have reacted to the news with dismay. They have sent letters to the media, created a YouTube video and organized websites. They are asking for mediation with the Trustees to keep Conserve a four-year school.

But mediation doesn’t look likely. In the letter sent to parents about tomorrow’s meeting, Anderson made clear that there is no room for negotiating.

“As we prepare for our meeting,” he wrote, “I ask you that you keep in mind that the decision to transition to a semester program has been made and thus any efforts to reopen that decision process are not a good use of anyone’s time and energy. In order to sustain the mission of Conserve School, we must embrace its future as a Semester School. Accordingly, our goal in the meeting is to continue our dialogue about how we can best support Conserve students in the transition. Let’s come to the meeting with an open mind and a positive exchange of ideas as to how to help all of our students progress and succeed.”

Environment, outdoor activities, access for all

Conserve was founded in 2002 through a non-profit endowment established by James Lowenstine. Lowenstine, who died in 1996, left a Trust that spelled out his aspirations for an environmentally-oriented boarding school in Land O’Lakes on land he owned. Overseeing the school are five trustees from Central Steel & Wire Company in Chicago. Lowenstine had been president of CSW.

The mission of the 1,200-acre school was three-fold: to provide an environmental education for high school students, provide an abundance of outdoor activities, and provide assistance to those who otherwise could not afford to attend. The school is notable for its forward-looking green technology, including the famous Green Machine that reuses the waste generated on campus, a new solar panel research station, and a soon-to-be-built educational windmill.

The three goals are taken seriously by the CSW trustees. Last year, more than $2 million was given out in financial assistance to students. “Almost every kid here has a merit or financial aid,” said Headmaster Anderson in a phone interview. “The average U.S. student pays about $9,000 at Conserve. That is much lower than most other private schools and about one-quarter of tuition.”

Anderson said Conserve’s tuition for 2008-09 was $30,000. Students from abroad make up about one-fourth of the population, and generally pay full tuition.

Large endowment, small alumni, large financial aid

Conserve’s endowment comprises 74 percent CSW stock and 26 percent other investments. The endowment stands at $187 million – down from $197 million from a year ago, yet still an enviable sum for any small private school.

“It’s a large endowment,” Anderson acknowledged, “and that’s why we can be generous with financial aid. But the goal is not to tap into the principal.”

Many parents feel that the huge endowment suggests that the CSW trustees are not being straight with them. A parents group has accused the trustees of violating Lowensteine’s Trust, which states a goal for creating an academy of 7th through 12th grades.

Anderson counters that Lowenstine also explicitly trusted his CSW trustees “to be responsible for seeing that his dream was fulfilled as they saw best.” What the trustees are seeing, Anderson said, is a bleak time ahead financially.

Anderson feels the trustees are sincerely trying to make pro-active moves that will keep Conserve operating in a way that fulfills the mission Lowenstine laid out. “We’re not saying we’re broke,” he said. “We’re trying to be responsible. I’ve been here eight years. I’ve put my heart and soul into this program. I’m not eager to make the change, but I know the financial realities out there of private schools.”

The reaction from parents, Anderson said, is understandable. Some parents have asked him why the school hasn’t gone to them for more money. “First, we trust what information they are giving us about their family financial situation,” he said, “and so to go back to them and ask for five or six times the amount they are currently paying in tuition would be a hardship. And then, it’s contrary to what Jim wanted. He wanted a variety of students from all income levels to be able to go to Conserve.”

Private schools are all feeling the pinch, Anderson said. “We’ve established contacts with more than 80 schools to help students find alternatives, and it’s a slice of the economy – they are all feeling the recession.

"Our problem here is," he added, "while we have a large endowment, we don’t have a large alumni base to turn to for donations, as many schools do. Our first four-year class graduated in 2006. They’re very loyal and supportive but they don’t have a lot of money to give. And we’re also different from other schools because we do so generously give financial aid.”

Conserve's Head Trustee Ron Kazmar of CSW, when reached by phone, said, “The large endowment means we’re more exposed to the current slump in investments. The CSW stock is stable, and can’t be sold. It’s the rest – the investments – that have dropped 22 percent since last year. Realistically, planning out for the next five to 10 years, the CSW stock and our investments is all we have. We have the land, but that’s the school’s main asset.”

Contrary to what some parents have said, Kazmar said, the proposed change “is not a prelude to closing the school. We are not closing the school by any stretch of imagination. We’re doing this to ensure Conserve will thrive.”

While parents of current students are understandably upset, “other parents have told me the four-year preparatory school doesn’t work as well for them," Kazar said. "They don’t want their kid away from home for so long, but they tell me they like the semester.”

Kazmar added, “We would not be doing this if it were not for the very abrupt change in the economy. That served as a catalyst. We were forced to think about how we could preserve the school’s mission and we concluded the semester program is best way to preserve it.”

For more information, go to conserveschool.org.

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2/20/2009 Update:

NNN received the following press release today from the Conserve Community, a parents group:

Conserve Community expects to announce today that a law suit has been filed in Vilas County against the entities operating Conserve School. Twenty plaintiffs are named in the suit. Conserve

Community represents over 230 students, parents and community members who feel, the recently announced change in direction for the school is a violation of the founder’s intentions.

Conserve Community has scheduled a meeting for 2 p.m. (CST) today at the Land O’Lakes Town Hall.

The purpose of the meeting, according to spoke person Bill Meier, “ is to provide an open forum of sharing information. Since the trustees have not been willing to give any details about their decision making process there are a lot of unanswered questions. Parents, students and community members who wanted answers have done their research and many things don’t make sense. Since the trustees never responded to mediation, the legal action taken today was the next logical step.”