KEWEENAW BAY — The next step in exploring a consolidation of the Baraga and L’Anse school districts is a feasibility study by the state Department of Treasury.

A request for proposals for the study is open for bids until mid-January, L’Anse Superintendent Susan Tollefson said. She wasn’t sure of the timeline for completion once a consultant is picked, but said it would probably be at least a couple of months.

Once the study is complete, it will be presented to the individual school boards, who will decide on a course of action from there. Neither board has taken a formal action to move forward.

The two districts began exploring potential consolidation last year in response to declining enrollment.

A survey sent to district residents last fall showed majority support for combining the two districts.

Parents and community members backed the idea, with 62% choosing one of the positive responses — either “I think it’s a great idea” or “Overall positive, but I have some reservations.”

More than 1,000 people responded to the survey, according to a joint release from the Baraga and L’Anse districts.

Students were less supportive of consolidation. Only 37% of L’Anse students selected “great idea” or “overall positive,” and 44% of Baraga students.

Asked about building use, 66% of respondents favored locating an elementary school in one town and a junior-senior high school in the other.

At a joint board meeting in October, officials from both districts had stressed the importance of a new district identity, rather than subsuming one district into another.

Residents were polled on several suggested names for the new district. At 42% of the vote, the most popular was Keweenaw Bay Schools.

Eagles received 27% of the vote for school mascot, making it the most preferred option. It was followed by Cougars, which got 20%.

The vote for school colors was closer. Purple, a color included in both districts’ color schemes, would be part of a new one. The top option was purple, white and gold, picked by 34% of respondents. It narrowly edged out purple and black, which received 32%.