PRUDENCE ISLAND — As soon as the school committee announced it did not include funding for the Prudence Island School in next year's budgets, phones on the island rang with the news and islanders talked strategy.

During last year's budget cycle, the school district proposed closing the century-old school, that at the time served two students, to save about $75,000. But to do that, the school district added a lengthy transportation schedule to the elementary students' regular school day. It would have created a day that was more than ten hours long, ferrying students to Bristol where they take a bus (just for them) to Melville Elementary, and then repeat it backwards at the end of the school day to arrive home — during winter time — after dark.

Although, the school committee and town council reached an agreement last year to keep the one-room schoolhouse open, Prudence Islanders took the matter to the state board of education.

A hearing officer ruled last October that the school district has the right to close the school to create savings, but it must devise a more suitable transportation plan than the one outlined above, which the hearing officer found detrimental to student safety and health.

"We have not been able to come up with a different transportation plan," School Committee Vice-Chairman Richard Carpender said on Thursday. He said the school committee is not sure what to do with the three students who would attend the island school next year.

Mr. Carpender said the school committee was faced with "getting a balanced budget across the street" to the town council by last Wednesday. That meant details of some cuts had not been fully discussed, Mr. Carpender said (such as an additional $168,000 eliminated from the budget's bottom line without identifying exactly what is coming out).

The school district is looking into transportation options for the island students that would satisfy the board of education's ruling. Mr. Carpender said that if a suitable plan is not found, the school could remain open next year.

But that's not enough for Prudence Islanders whose historic school and four schoolchildren are now in limbo.

"We have a ruling by the commissioner that says unless there's a plan for different transportation," said Grace McEntee, Prudence Island School Working Committee member, "then the school has to stay open."

Ms. McEntee spoke with several other members and parents of two of the schoolchildren who agree that its worth fighting for the school because it keeps their community viable.

"We'll be taking action on this," Ms. McEntee said. "If you don't have a school in the community, you'll never have people on the island with kids."

By Jill Rodrigues

jrodrigues@eastbaynewspapers.com