COEUR d'ALENE - Kootenai Technical Education Campus is suspending its carpentry program for at least one semester while school officials revamp the program to make it more attractive to students.

The move displaced about five students who were one year into the two-year certified carpentry course.

"I have a student enrolled in the construction program," said Marilyn Tanner, mother of a KTEC student. "Now he won't be able to get his certification."

Jerry Keane, superintendent of the Post Falls School District and chairman of the KTEC board, said the program wasn't paying the bills because it wasn't attracting enough students.

"The decision was based solely on economics," Keane said on Monday. "We have to have enough students to pay the bills."

He said KTEC is looking at ways to reinvent the program, and bring it back possibly as early as the second semester of this school year.

"It's unfortunate. Nobody wanted to do it," he said. "But I am confident with the help of our corporate partners we can find a way to bring it back."

Keane said KTEC officials are looking for a way to help the displaced students get certified. He said both Lakeland and Post Falls school districts have similar classes in their manufacturing programs, but the certification students receive in those programs may be a little different from the KTEC certifications.

Tanner said KTEC's decision to just dump the program is frustrating and disappointing.

"These kids committed to a program and now the school is letting them down," she said. "That's just criminal to me. When you commit to something you follow through with it."

Keane said once the new program is developed it should be more attractive to students, which will hopefully fill the class up again.