Struggling district in rural Kansas votes to close elementary

After three members of the Cherokee (Kan.) school board resigned, the remaining members voted to close a school that has existed for generations. The Joplin Globe says the decision came after the board tried for months to find a way to keep schools in three towns afloat amid declining enrollment and a shrinking budget. The board voted to close the school in McCune, which has 39 students in grades one, two and four. Schools will remain open in Weir and Cherokee. The district, which spans 326 square miles of rural Crawford and Cherokee counties, is one of the poorest in the state.