As the news spread of an upcoming registration fee hike and the introduction of extracurricular fees into the Mendota Elementary School District 289, local parents are lining up on opposite sides of the educational fence that is strapped for funding.

In lieu of outstanding state aid payments that are missing from the District 289 coffers, the Mendota Community District 289 School Board of Education voted to raise registration fees $10 and introduced annual $15 athletic and extracurricular fees at the Feb. 18 meeting.

Even with the state government reneging on payments all across Illinois, some parents still want a crystal-clear accountability of the added registration fee money.

“I don’t want to pay anything extra - nobody does,” said a District 289 parent who wished to remain anonymous. “But why is there a $10 registration fee (hike), and what benefit is it for my child? Where is the extra $10 going to? I want the dollars broken down.”

That same parent was a bit more understanding in terms of the $15 athletic and extracurricular fees.

“I know what the athletic fees cost,” the parent said. “It costs $190 to play baseball in the summer, so the $15 I’m not too worried about. I guess if it (the athletic fees) are going to help athletics, then it is OK with me.”

Parent Colleen Martin has one child in the District 289 system and another on the way, and while she is positive about the fee hikes, she was a bit more apprehensive about the future of publicly-funded Pre-K programs.

“If there would be cuts to Pre-K, that would be really unfortunate,” Martin said. “To cut back would be drastic, and our kids would just have a higher hill to climb when they entered Kindergarten.”

The District 289 Board voted to discontinue Pre-K at risk bus service for the 2010-2011 academic year due to escalating transportation costs and the lack of state grant money. Heading into the final months of the 2009-2010 school year, no decisions have been made to scale back the actual Pre-K program at Northbrook School.

Martin was in favor of paying athletic fees instead of passing the cost on to a tax-paying base of citizens.

“If that’s what it is going to take to keep things the way they are, then I’m for it (extracurricular fees),” Martin said of the one-time per year payment of $15 for sports participates and scholastic bowl, band and chorus members. It’s better that I pay (an activity fee) than a retired couple paying more taxes.”

With the $15 surcharge ready to take effect next school year, parents signaled a warning to the board: don’t raise the activity fees to make taking part in sports, band, chorus or scholastic bowl unaffordable.

“Fifteen dollars is a reasonable price; it is manageable,” Martin said. “I think a $30 (fee) would be a little steep. I’m basically fine with the fee price, but any more than $15 would be pretty drastic.”