The Issaquah School District is considering shuttering the alternative high school, Tiger Mountain Community High School.

The district’s board president Marnie Maraldo, said Superintendent Ron Thiele hasn’t presented anything formal to the board yet, but when members looked at building a new Issaquah Middle School, they knew Tiger could become a different model than it is now.

The plan to build a new middle school includes moving Tiger Mountain and Clark Elementary into the old middle school, which will be remodeled.

“We knew there would be program changes,” Maraldo said.

No new students will be enrolled at Tiger in the 2014-2015 academic year so most will graduate out before the changes, Maraldo said. The remaining 40 or so kids would then go back to their comprehensive high schools in the 2015-2016 academic year if they haven’t graduated.

Lorraine Michelle, the district’s director of communications, said the district has some career and technological ideas to create what is referred to as a choice school.

“We’re working on developing what that looks like,” she said. “Not all students fit the role in a comprehensive school.”

She said that essentially Tiger has the same model as the comprehensive schools, with the same curriculum.

“The new school won’t be one you’re referred to because of behavioral problems — rather focusing on a specific option,” Michelle said.

She said professional-technical elements could be part of a choice school, but it’s more about students pursuing their passion.

But the non-profit Issaquah Community Network is not excited. The network’s board sent a letter to Thiele, dated March 11 urging him keep Tiger Mountain open, continuing to serve students throughout the construction phase of the new school, and urging him to form an advisory council or sounding board to assist in this decision with the administration and school board.

“Such a group would ideally include representation from current Tiger Mountain High School students and recent graduates (if available), school staff, parents, local and regional businesses involved with entry-level employment, central Issaquah neighborhoods and community members with expertise in mental health, drug and alcohol dependency, homelessness and poverty issues,” the letter penned by ICN chair Dianne Bugge, executive director Barbara de Michele, treasurer Judy Brewer and student representative Erika Kumar said.

The network added that students at Tiger “face social, emotional, physical and economic challenges that might overwhelm people of any age.”

The young teens ICN helps often have little family or community support.

“The fact that these teens seek to further their education is an inspiring example for our entire community. Returning these students to their home high schools where they have often failed, or been marginalized or ostracized, is not the best solution for students who have already faced innumerable disruptions during their young lives. Helping these teens maintain ties to caring and supportive adults and a familiar school structure during the transition period to a new school is clearly in the best interests of these students,” the letter states.

Mike Schiehser, Tiger Mountain’s principal, said he’s focused on the kids and staff right now, letting them know he’s there for them and that they will be supported no matter what changes are coming.

“Their needs and challenges are real,” Schiehser said of the students. “We’re letting them know we’re committed to supporting them until graduation. They do have a voice and their needs are being heard.”

He said he knows that the district is going to want community, parent, student and staff involvement. He said there already has been a ton of input.

“Not only will they get more input, as we start to plan a new school, we’ll start to get more input from other stakeholders. This is very challenging for staff and the students,” Schiehser said. “We have very vulnerable students, who have a lot of anxiety, depression, or have addictions to certain things and we have to make sure those students who are vulnerable get the services they need.”

Michelle said the goal is to motivate Tiger students with real-world applications.

“We’re trying to spark interest in subjects that are boring to students — to motivate them. We feel there are a fair amount of kids who are flying under the radar,” Michelle said.

She said many students don’t know how to even find out about a specific career they might be interested in. One idea is to send them out, working in their field of interest.

The district plans to meet one-on-one with the students remaining at Tiger to be sure they get the support they need to graduate. ICN, on the other hand, thinks that closure of the school for any length of time would leave students un-served and perhaps lost to the community forever.