Every few years, like the return of the locusts, the subject of one unified countywide school district in the York area comes up for discussion.

But the debate always seems to die for a lack of interest. And fast.

The truth is no one wants to give up control of his or her own little piece of education heaven in favor of consolidation.

So we keep on keeping on with 16 county school districts instead of eight or six or one.

Truth be told, it wouldn't be the easiest thing in the world to make happen. There'd be ownership issues all over the place. The administration picture would have to change dramatically. But how? Athletic competitions between districts would have to be restructured. And the big one -- a uniform salary and benefit structure for all county teachers -- might be impossible to negotiate.

I pretty much figured this was never going to happen. Not in my lifetime, at least.

But then York County superintendents started considering a recommendation made by Augenblick, Palaich and Associates Inc., a Colorado-based education consulting firm, that a countywide cyber school would better serve students and save money.

The consulting firm was hired by the Center for Community Engagement at York College to analyze efficiency in York County school districts and recommend ways they could work together to improve student performance.

Right away, I perked up.

Because in my warped mind, a countywide cyber school and a countywide school district are kissing

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cousins. The only things that keep them from being twin sisters are the technology component and a whole mess of empty school buildings.

The theory is that a K-12 cyber school would serve students throughout York County and be housed at the Lincoln Intermediate Unit.

OK, I know the cyber school concept, as proposed in the report, is intended to meet the academic needs of students from various school districts when there isn't enough interest in one subject or another -- art history, for example, or foreign languages -- to justify the hiring of a full-time teacher in each district.

But if there are six students at York Suburban, five more in West York and Dover, and three or four from Dallastown, Central and Northeastern, then suddenly we have a combined 25 or 26 students for a cyber art history class taught by one teacher.

That makes sense to me.

Except that my mind won't stop there. It quickly expands on the concept by creating one countywide cyber school that would teach every student in York County. If technology has reached a point where we can educate students by computer via a cyber school, then what is the necessity of building $40 million-$50 million elementary, middle and senior high schools all over York County to meet the needs of growing student populations?

None at all. Close the schools. Let the kids stay home. In effect, every student in York County would be homeschooled.

Students could work from home, advancing through their academic coursework at their own pace. They could take advantage of an expanded curriculum unavailable at their home district. There'd be obvious financial savings, a result of less overhead and, perhaps, fewer administrators and teachers. They call it economy of scale, I believe.

Colleges and universities are doing it -- whole classes (even master's degree courses) are taught and completed by computer these days. All communication between student and professor is done by e-mail. Why not public schools, too?

The more I think about this, the more I think it has possibilities, especially for secondary students.

It has a nice ring to it. The Consolidated York County Cyber School -- student population: 34,000 secondary students. Or 70,000 K-12.

So let the debate begin.

Columns by Larry A. Hicks, Dis patch columnist, run Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. E-mail: lhicks@yorkdispatch.com.