ARLINGTON — This year’s Trafton Fair might be a happier affair than usual.
Not that it’s normally a dour event, but families and teachers at Trafton Elementary School have been worried for months about the fate of the 90-year-old rural schoolhouse that plays host to the fair.
Enrollment was down, and administrators were talking about sending the 117 students elsewhere within Arlington School District.
Those fears have evaporated. A summer promotional push by parents on the Save Trafton Committee has boosted the unofficial student count to 143, which should be enough to keep the school open.
Robin Swain, whose daughter Karissa is in the third grade at Trafton, sounded gratified that all the organizing is paying off.
"It’s exciting to see that kids still want to enroll in this type of school," Swain said.
Trafton Elementary is a throwback to a different era. It only has one class per grade, kindergarten through fifth. The white schoolhouse still has wooden floors and a swinging bell with a rope.
For Swain and other parents, the school and its staff add a personal touch that is different from bigger, more modern schools.
"I like the sense of community we have," Swain said.
Kay Duskin of the Arlington School Board was impressed by the recruiting effort parents made.
"They deserve most of the credit," Duskin said, adding that the school’s lead teacher, Dan Larson, also worked hard.
Duskin said school officials considered closing Trafton after student enrollment sagged. The district tries to keep the ratio of students to teachers within a similar range at all of its schools to maximize its budget.
The district considered using the building for an alternative program, Duskin said. The district could have saved $90,000 in annual rent of space in the Free Methodist Church by moving the home-school-oriented Stillaguamish Valley School to Trafton.
And the alternative Weston High School has been "bursting at the seams" the past few years, Duskin said. This year, Weston has a waiting list, and the district is considering using portables there.
But when Trafton’s enrollment reached more than 130 students, it made sense to stay with the status quo. The first official count is Wednesday.
Swain said parents and administrators have been communicating better, and district staff is being more helpful telling new families that Trafton is an option for their children.
Reporter Scott Morris:
425-339-3292 or
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