HOWLAND, Ohio - The Howland Board of Education decided Monday night that it will be closing one of its schools.

North Road Intermediate will be closed starting next school year.

That means fifth graders will have to be moved to the middle school. 

The superintendent said they are excited about the change and that this will save the school district about half a million dollars a year. 

"The important part of all of this is we're making a stronger Howland now and down the road," said Superintendent Kevin Spicher. "If we continue to spread out resources out across several different buildings, it's problematic and makes the operations less efficient."

Spicher also said a reason for the closure is the decline in students within the district.

Incentives have been offered to staff to give more opportunities for younger members of the district to stick around and stay on board, according to Spicher.