“We are not closing. We prefer to think of this as opening a new chapter in the history of Christian education for the children of this congregation,” St. Mark Lutheran School Principal Dan Wacker said.

The school, in its present form, will cease to exist beginning with the 2008-09 school year, according to Wacker.

“This is not what we wanted to see, but it is a blessing that we can continue to offer Christian education for our students,” Wacker commented.

To do this, St. Mark will work in partnership with Zion Lutheran School in Mayer.

“We have been in talks with them for the last couple of years,” Wacker said. Committees from both churches worked out the details, and St. Mark’s congregation formally accepted the arrangement in spring 2008.

Under the agreement, Zion will accept St. Mark’s students at the member tuition rate.

The St. Mark congregation will offer its members 50 percent tuition assistance ($950) to help offset the tuition difference. St. Mark’s current member tuition is $1,300, and Zion’s is $1,900, Wacker said.

“The actual cost to educate a student at St. Mark is $5,000, and the difference between tuition and the actual cost has been made up by donations from the congregation, fundraisers, and a matching program through Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, from which the school received $18,000 in matching gifts this year,” Wacker explained.

St. Mark will continue to maintain the school building. It will not be used for classes, but it may be used for activities such as basketball practice.

“We are going to wait and see what the future will bring. We hope it will bring growth,” Wacker commented.

Some possibilities that have been discussed include using the St. Mark school building for a pre-school or day care. It could also provide space for future expansion if conditions change.

“This move could energize the two schools and congregations. We are assuming the majority of our students will go there (to Zion). We hope they will continue to take advantage of the opportunity for a Christian education,” Wacker said.

He expects a smooth transition for the students.

“The students in the upper grades were already working together on sports,” Wacker said.

He added that the report from the committee is that there may be some name changes for the sports teams, but the name of Zion school will not change.

The Waconia bus will drop New Germany students off at Zion, Wacker said.

Zion principal Debra Kelzer said any changes will be “very minor.”

“We can easily accommodate any number of students that they send us,” Kelzer said.

The school is in the process of planning for the new students. Kelzer was unable to say if this will result in any staff changes.

“We anticipate some restructuring, but that is part of the discussion,” Kelzer said. No decisions have yet been made.

Zion currently has 85 students, and enrollment has been fairly consistent for the past three or four years, according to Kelzer.

St. Mark had a total of 35 students at the end of the 2007-08 school year, including pre-school. At its peak, the enrollment was about 90 students.

The school served students from New Germany, Lester Prairie, and Watertown.

The end of classes at St. Mark’s will bring about changes, but Wacker remains optimistic.

“We are trying to look at this in a positive light. We are blessed to have been able to offer Christian education since 1915, and this congregation will continue to support this at Zion, and will still be involved,” Wacker commented.