LUTHERANS MAKE PLANS FOR NEW SCHOOL

As area students -- both public and parochial -- head back to school, 16 Lutheran congregations are already making plans for next year.

The congregations, which cover an area from Sikeston to Perryville, hope to open Saxony Lutheran High School in the fall of 2000.

The Lutheran high school would be the first in Southeast Missouri. There are elementary-level Lutheran schools, but nothing for high school students in the area. The closest high school is in St. Louis.

But before the doors can open, there is plenty of work to be done so students can enroll.

A steering committee with representatives from interested congregations has been meeting for several months. The group incorporated recently and has been working on a charter and selecting a site for the school.

"A few things we did were to vote on membership dues," said the Rev. David Dissen, pastor Emeritus of Trinity Lutheran Church. The dues are $5 per communicant member of the congregations. Credit has been given to congregations that have already paid for the July 1 to June 30 fiscal year.

"The next thing we will have to do is site selection. We have a committee that is contacting churches and looking at sites," said Dissen.

At first the steering committee had hoped to use the old Notre Dame High School at Ritter and Caruthers streets, but that option has been put aside while other temporary sites are considered.

"There is the possibility of using St. Andrew Lutheran Church as a temporary arrangement," said Dissen.

Other action taken during a meeting this week included selecting a board of directors. The board members: Fred Younghouse of Cape Girardeau, chairman; the Rev. Dr. Bill Dillon of Sikeston, president; George Koeppel of Gordonville, vice president; and Lynn Winter of Uniontown, treasurer. Ex officio members are Dissen and the Rev. Lee Cullen, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Gordonville. They will serve as pastoral advisers to the board.

Several other committees were selected to study the site of the new school as well as curriculum and fund raising.

Dissen, who is also serving as a spokesman for the board, said a curriculum design has already been suggested. It would include a college-preparatory track. Curriculum suggestions will be studied by the board during a Sept. 20 meeting.