The Iowa Department of Education has gone through with the plan of the new Cedar Valley Conference.

The new CVC will feature 13 different schools including Mid-Prairie, Western Dubuque and Camanche. Mid-Prairie is the furthest south and west in the new conference, giving them about a two hour drive to the schools to the North and East.

Mid-Prairie Athletic Director Steve Hollan says his school has already run into problems with the new conference as the Mid-Prairie baseball team went to North Cedar, and didn’t get back until 1 a.m. the night before finals. He also says that there are more schools than just Mid-Prairie that are unhappy with the change, but that the Department has said the decision is final.

Hollan says this decision could become more than just long bus rides. He added that schools around the area have all said their biggest expense is transportation, and that with the added distance the cost for a bus and driver would be very high.

Mike Dick of the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union said the mediation group had nothing to do with adding Mid-Prairie, that it was all a process that was moved to the Department of education.

The Iowa Department of Education was contacted and KCII is awaiting more information regarding the decision.

The new conference will go into effect the 2013-14 season and will not and cannot be changed until the 2016-17 school year.