Briefs: Early Release Days and New School Calendar, New ArtWaves Director, Library Posts Letter About $330,000 Budget Ask
Quahogs, razor clams, eastern oysters, and hen clams may be added to Bar Harbor ordinance, Trail Running Film Festival Coming to Bar Harbor
BAR HARBOR—We’ve collated a few press releases and briefer stories below.
NEW SCHOOL CALENDAR STILL EVOLVING!
BAR HARBOR—The AOS 91 Regular Board Meeting on February 12 focused on the ongoing creation of next year’s school calendar.
The meeting opened up with a public comment from Laura Muller, a Bar Harbor resident and parent of a Conners-Emerson student.
Muller advocated for weekly half days for the school calendar at the elementary and middle school levels, rather than having half days that, she said, seemed to be all over the place from the perspective of a parent who is trying to establish routines for their child and family. Muller said that she believes that even though weekly half days look like less school, it actually allows for a broader educational mission and more regular and productive school time for the involved children.
At last month’s meeting, Muller said, there was discussion about community partners who said that they may be willing to provide childcare for students on half days but the random nature of the currently scheduled half days makes it hard for them to produce curriculum and to schedule staff to cover the necessary times. Muller urged the board to from a subcommittee to start looking at potential community partners who might be able provide half day childcare.
Muller closed out her comment by saying, “I appreciate the many competing interests that have a stake in the school calendar. Please, as you consider the calendar tonight, consider the needs of the children and families who need routines as important stakeholders in this process.”
School Superintendent Mike Zboray said that he has tweaked the calendar from the last proposed version after having spoken with principals and teachers. Those tweaks were based on many different aspects, one being regional requirements.
One of those regional requirements is that the school calendars in a particular career and technical education region (CTE) must be in sync with each other with no more than six days being out of sync. The goal of that, according to Zboray, is so that CTE students are maximizing their education. For AOS 91, this means that this applies to the calendar of the Hancock County Technical Center. MDI High School currently has approximately 50 students who attend HCTC and that number has been growing lately.
The newest version of the school calendar keeps AOS 91 within that six-day synchronization limitation.
EARLY RELEASE DAYS
There are five district days early release days (ERD) and these are “utilized for curriculum and district initiatives to support muti-tiered systems of support (MTSS) and grade level collaboration and the curriculum,” Zboray said. One district based ERD has been moved out of September and redistributed so that there is only one district based ERD in the beginning of the school year.
There are also four school-based early ERDs organized as close to a six week cycle as possible to support MTSS data rotation to meet new student learning goals and possible intervention needs.
Zboray said that they tried to avoid pre-holiday Fridays as ERDs as much as possible but the Friday before April break is an ERD.
They will also be looking at how the school calendar may effect some school staff who also hold jobs during the tourist season. Zboray said that there have been some concerns aired regarding school staff who work during the summer and have a hard time finding summer jobs because they cannot find one that lets them be available for the start of the school year.
Zboray wants to collect data to see how many school staff this actually affects and he believes that the earliest days of the school year are geared more towards classroom routines, culture, and growing comfortable rather than diving right into learning and teaching.
Member Keri Hayes said that a lot of the employers are looking for people who will work through Labor Day. Every day that a kid is in class, especially at the beginning of the year, without all of their support people in place, is harder on them. She feels that this is an important issue that they need to pay attention to when developing the school calendar.
She also said that this is more about kids who may need extra support and might disrupt the classrooms if the support staff are not in place and working yet to work with those kids.
The next meeting of the MDIRSS AOS Regular Board will be on Monday, March 11, at the high school library.
JENNY WALKER NEW ARTWAVES’ EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
TOWN HILL—ArtWaves, a beacon of creativity and community engagement, proudly announces the appointment of Jenny Walker as its new executive director. With an illustrious career spanning two decades as a dynamic librarian and visual artist, Walker brings a unique blend of expertise in community programming, partnerships, and artistic expression to her new role.
"I am thrilled to embark on this new chapter with ArtWaves," Walker said. "My passion for community engagement and the transformative power of art align perfectly with ArtWaves' mission. I am eager to leverage my experience as a librarian and visual artist to uplift expression and foster connections within the community."
Walker's journey through the vibrant landscape of public service and artistic endeavor began at the Free Library of Philadelphia, where she honed her skills over 20 years. As library coordinator, she played a pivotal role in overseeing the activities of 11 branch libraries, spearheading collection development, programming, and community-centered services. Her innovative approach to public program planning, implementation, and assessment set a high standard for excellence. Walker's success was marked by her ability to cultivate collaborative relationships with staff and partners, fostering an environment of creativity and inclusion.
At ArtWaves, Walker aims to continue the organization's legacy of uplifting expression and promoting the power of art to enrich lives. Her dynamic leadership style, coupled with her extensive experience in program development, budgeting, promotion, and evaluation, positions her as a catalyst for growth and innovation.
The ArtWaves’ board of directors enthusiastically welcomes Walker's appointment.
Board President Stefanie Joy Muscat said, "Jenny's proven track record of developing collaborative relationships and creating innovative programming makes her an ideal fit for ArtWaves. We are excited to welcome her to Mt. Desert Island and are confident that her leadership will further elevate ArtWaves' impact in our community."
Walker's appointment marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for the organization, as it continues to serve as a vital hub for artistic expression and community engagement on Mt. Desert Island.
JESUP SENDS OUT LETTER TO WARRANT COMMITTEE ASKING FOR FULL FUNDING ASK TO ITS MAILING LIST
BAR HARBOR—On Friday morning, Jesup Memorial Library Director Matt DeLaney sent a copy of his letter to Warrant Committee members to the library’s mailing list.
The letter also included a screenshot of Bar Harbor Councilor Kyle Shank’s Facebook post. Shank provided data to the library for a report earlier this year. At least one member of the Warrant Committee hadn’t received the letter as of February 23.
The letter is below.
TO: Seth Libby, Chair, Bar Harbor Warrant Committee
FROM: Matt DeLaney, Director, Jesup Memorial Library
Ron Beard, Chair, Jesup Memorial Library Board of Directors
DATE: February 21, 2024
RE: Further consideration of the Jesup request for funding
Good morning, Seth.
We wanted an opportunity to share some further details supporting the request of the Jesup Memorial Library for an increase in the town’s appropriation in 2024-25. We would be grateful if you would distribute this to members of the Warrant Committee.
Some background: In a recent post on Facebook, Council Member Kyle Shank provided an explanation of his reasoning to support the Jesup request of $330,000. Below, we include the text of his post, and note his conclusion: “The library, if funded at the requested level this year, would cost the median taxpayer about $1.25 a week.”
A follow up post asked why the Jesup was seeking increased funding from the town, given its successful capital drive for preservation work on the existing library building and construction of an addition. We wanted to share the essence of our response to that question with members of the Warrant Committee.
We noted that the capital fund drive and construction was funded entirely through private donations and grants… nearly $14 million dollars. We point out that the vast majority came from donors at every level who are also property taxpayers in Bar Harbor, clear evidence of support for the Jesup’s value to our community. No local tax dollars were provided to support these capital expenditures.
Next, we referred the citizen to our fall 2023 report on operations and comparison to other Maine libraries… warrant committee members may already be familiar with that report:
www.jesuplibrary.org/study-group-report
This report indicates that Jesup is one of the lowest publicly-funded libraries in Maine when compared to similarly sized libraries. Although this is not a new problem for our library, the rate of inflation and cost of living in Bar Harbor has added urgency to our present request to the town.
As you will know from your subcommittee report, our request for an increase of $50,000 in this year's Town budget represents the amount needed to maintain current operations. Over the past 5 years, compounding inflation has added over $150,000 to our operating costs and the increased cost of health benefits has added $75,000 to our budget. The library, which serves thousands of Bar Harbor residents year-round, is grappling with this reality and working to ensure services continue for our community.
As a public library, the Jesup doesn’t charge fees or memberships; library cards and public programs are free. Like other Maine libraries, we are dependent on what we raise on our own, what we draw from endowment and reserves, and support from the Town of Bar Harbor to deal with increased costs. The report notes that the Jesup raises a larger proportion of its operating support through private donations than almost any other library in Maine, and we have successfully increased our fundraising over the past several years.
But as with any economic enterprise, our costs for competitive but modest salaries and benefits have increased, accounting for 75% of our annual operating budget. After nearly a century with minimal municipal support, the Jesup has sought increases in town funding to assure that we keep pace. Without this additional support, the library will have to reduce staff and services in the coming years.
Finally, we note that the Jesup puts more money into the local economy than our appropriation from the town. In 2023, the Jesup received $280,000 from the Town, but spent an additional $408,000 in non-tax operating revenue to support its services.
We would be pleased to answer any additional questions about library operations and the rationale for our current request for town support.
One of us served for several years as a member of the warrant committee and subsequently as a member of the town council. But we both know the balancing act that you and your elected colleagues play: watching out for tax payers, at the same time assuring that our good community maintains community assets like the Jesup that contribute to the very real quality of life that our fellow citizens value.
We sincerely appreciate your consideration of the Jesup’s request for town funding.
Addendum: Facebook post by Kyle Shank
Click here to download a PDF of the letter.
If you have questions or comments for the library, click here to use our feedback form.
Shank posted another chart on Friday morning, an hour before the letter to the library’s mailing list went out. It was not included in that letter, but it’s posted below.
ADDITIONAL SHELLFISH SPECIES EYED FOR CO-MANAGEMENT
The Bar Harbor Marine Resources Committee will meet February 28 at 4 p.m. in the Town Council Chambers to discuss adding several species of shellfish to the town’s co-management responsibilities.
Currently, the town only co-manages soft-shell clams under its Shellfish Conservation ordinance.
The committee may recommend the Town Council add quahogs, razor clams, eastern oysters, and hen clams to the ordinance. This would allow for the committee to set levels of harvest, the shellfish wardens to enforce rules around harvest, and to create education around harvesting of these species. It would also allow for the harvest of oysters during the summer, which will otherwise be prohibited by the state starting in 2024. If these changes occur, anyone harvesting these species in the Bar Harbor intertidal would have to obtain a town shellfish license. The committee looks forward to hearing from people both in and outside of Bar Harbor as they consider their next steps. Email comments can be sent to the chair, Chris Petersen at chrisp@coa.eduor come to the in-person meeting.
TRAIL RUNNING FESTIVAL COMING TO BAR HARBOR
The Trail Running Film Festival will once again include Bar Harbor as a stop on its Global Tour, coming to town on Saturday, March 30 at 7 p.m.
The Mount Desert Island YMCA and The 1932 Criterion Theatre, which is where the films will be shown, are co-sponsoring the event with proceeds from ticket sales supporting a number of important programs at the Y.
Curated by Outdoor Arts and Recreation, the festival features a collection of films that celebrate running as a universal practice to explore our collective and individual potential and pursue our wildest dreams. The organization hopes to accomplish this by documenting the culture of trail running, supporting filmmakers and creatives, and hosting events such as this one that bring our community together.
There will also be refreshments and door prizes raffled off at the showing on March 30.
More information on the films that will be shown, as well as prices for tickets, will be available soon on the Trail Running Film Festival's website: trailfilmfest.com
Disclosures: Carrie Jones is on the ArtWaves board. Shaun Farrar is a member of the town’s Warrant Committee.