Hutchinson Public Schools (USD 308)
Hutchinson Public Schools dates back to a one-room school that opened four years before the city of Hutchinson was incorporated. The district grew steadily with the community and benefited from Hutchinson Naval Air Stations presence south of the community during World War II and the Korean Conflict. At its height, Hutchinson Public Schools formerly known as Reno County District No. 1 had nearly 10,000 students. Several rural districts surrounded the district, each bumping up to the city's corporate limits. When the district was reorganized as Unified School District No. 308 on July 1, 1966, the Board decided the geography of the district should include only the then existing boundaries of Hutchinson. The decision allowed the district to maintain its neighborhood schools without any busing. Today, the district is the third smallest K-12 district in Kansas at 14 square miles. In contrast, the next smallest district in Reno County is Buhler USD 313 at 137 square miles. Fairfield USD 310 is more than a quarter the size of the entire state of Rhode Island at 435.5 miles. As the city of Hutchinson s boundaries expanded and the natural out-migration from the city center occurred, USD 308 did not enjoy the expanded population. Consequently, the rural districts became suburban.