“You won’t have to sue us ...”

Those were the words of Prentiss County School Board Member Perry Walden as he left a board meeting earlier this month. Many spectators heard the comment.

He made that statement to Daniel Tucker, attorney for a group of Jumpertown residents which seeks a temporary restraining order and permanent injunction to stop the closing of Jumpertown High School, grades 9-12, beginning with the 2011-2012 school year.

The board recently approved that action on a split vote. In the past, it has often been Walden’s vote that swung a particular issue one way or the other, in many instances.

If Walden’s vote “swings the pendulum” once again, it would likely revive the status quo at Jumpertown School for at least the next school year unless some other action is taken in the meantime.

The Banner-Independent spoke with Walden Wednesday afternoon regarding the comment and he confirmed making that statement to Tucker as he left the meeting. He said the Prentiss County School Board has already spent too much money defending past lawsuits.

“But, also, I would really like for us (the school board) to be fair. Every time we changed our mind, it was because we thought we came up with something better. All of us were putting our heads together to displace the least amount of students.”

Walden said he had previously been getting his dollar figures from former superintendent, Matt Smith, the business manager and from the State Board o Education in Jackson.

He now says he is planning to do additional financial research and see if funds can be compiled from somewhere else besides having to relocate students.

And, at this point, Walden said he is considering there to be a 50-50 chance that he might make a motion to rescind the action regarding Jumpertown at the March 15 meeting.

That meeting will also be the first presided over by newly appointed interim superintendent, Billy D. Stroupe.

Walden continued, “I’ve always said if someone could show me where we could save some money and not do anything (regarding school restructuring) I’ve always been open to that. No one has ever come up with that yet.”

But Walden also said he would not be in favor for cutting the curriculum. And he added, “I have never had a personal vendetta against the Jumpertown School. I just want to do what is best for the Prentiss County School District and whatever it takes for the school district to survive is what I want to do.”

He concluded by saying he did not want the county school district to become another “Okolona incident” where the state comes in and takes over the operation of a school district.