School Reorganization Forums Continue As Some Original Recommendations Have Changed
Reorganization Vote Could Happen This November
The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by Havana.
AOS 91—Some of the recommendations for the possible reorganization of AOS 91 into an RSU have changed in the last few months.
The first of multiple community forums regarding the potential reorganization took place at the Trenton Elementary School on Monday, June 23. There were approximately 20 members of the public in attendance along with eight people who were either reorganization planning committee (RPC) members, School Superintendent Mike Zboray, and RPC facilitator Kendra Rand.
The forums, at least the first one in Trenton, are breakout style meetings in which groups of attendees gather with RPC members and go over questions and/or concerns. There are three breakout sessions which cover the three topics listed below.
“The planning committee's recommendations for reorganizing our community's school district fall into three areas:
“Topic One: MDI Middle School and School Building Organization Across the Proposed RSU—Pre-K through sixth graders will continue learning in their local schools in Bar Harbor, MDES, Trenton, and Tremont. Pemetic School will welcome all 7th and 8th-graders, bringing students together from across our towns. Southwest Harbor families will have the option to choose which school their pre-K through sixth-grade students will attend, keeping community and connection at the heart of every choice. The outer island students will attend their island schools, maintaining choice.
“Topic Two: Proposed Governance for a New RSU—The newly reorganized school district will be led by a board with members from each town, responsible for policy, budgeting, and future planning.
“Topic Three: Proposed Funding Model for a New RSU—The newly reorganized school district will be funded by town taxes, with one shared budget ensuring similar property tax rates for education across all communities.”
TONIGHT’S MEETING
Tonight, June 30, the next forum will take place at Southwest Harbor’s Pemetic School from 6-8 p.m.
Based upon a June 23 email response from Zboray, the Bar Harbor Story had previously written that tonight’s meeting would be available on Zoom. An email response from Zboray today indicates that tonight’s meeting will not be available on Zoom.
THE MOST CURRENT PROPOSALS
The link below will open the most recent incarnation of the proposed plan from the RPC that will be presented at the forums. You can also check out the information on the AOS website regarding reorganization here.
WHAT HAS CHANGED A LOT
Disposition of Existing Debt
As of the publishing of the Bar Harbor Story’s March 6 article, the proposed plan for the RSU’s disposition of debt put forth two different options, both of which proposed absorbing debt, a portion or all, assumed by an individual town related to its school prior to the formation of the new RSU from individual towns.
Those options were:
The new RSU would assume “only a negotiated portion of the debt assumed before the formation of the RSU over a scheduled period of time” into the new RSU budget.
The new RSU would assume “all debt assumed before the formation of the RSU over a scheduled period of time into the new RSU budget.”
That has changed.
The new proposal reads, “We leave capital debt (new construction or renovations) with the town that assumed it before the RSU formation; operational debt is assumed by RSU.”
This means that Bar Harbor’s almost $60 million of debt associated with the building of its new school would stay with the taxpayers of Bar Harbor and not be part of the RSU budget.
Debt incurred after reorganization would be part of the RSU budget.
According to Zboray, “Any new construction or needed upkeep would be the responsibility of the RSU. Any project that requires a bond related to a school, the bond would be taken out by the RSU as a whole.”
Somewhat related to debt but also to the topic of town control of its school buildings, would be that, according to Zboray, “all building decisions become the responsibility of the RSU for the stewardship of the buildings.”
WHAT HAS CHANGED A LITTLE
Since March, the proposed organizational model for the schools themselves, as far as what buildings would be used for what grades has not changed. However, where Pemetic students would attend school had not been decided upon and the RPC was deliberating four different options.
Now the RPC is recommending that Pemetic students be able to attend the school of their choice with students not having a preference going to Mount Desert Elementary School.
WHAT HASN’T CHANGED
Proposed governance
Regarding reorganization governance, since March the proposed governance structure for the RSU has remained the same. The RSU would be governed by a board whose members would be “elected by the voters of the school district as a whole,” or at large voting, rather than only by the voters of their town of residence.
The proposed makeup of the RSU Board is shown in the chart below.
The potential governance organization as a whole across the entire RSU is shown in the chart below.
The individual towns’ advisory councils whose membership would be made up of parents, staff, an RSU board member, and chaired by the school’s principal would be advisory only and have no power other than advising the RSU board regarding their town’s particular school. The advisory council is the mechanism of local representation but only the town’s RSU board members would have any voting power.
Core functions of advisory councils, according to RSU materials are:
“Provide advice and recommendations to the school principal and district school board;
“Review school budget priorities, including school capital improvement plans;
“Hiring input/process for administration;
“Identify the school environment goals and learning goals that are particular to each school's needs;
“Advise in setting the direction for the school, consistent with school and district goals and communicate progress.”
Proposed funding model
The proposed funding model has not changed since March and it is shown in the slide below.
The chart below shows the estimated amount that a taxpayer with a property value of $650,000 would pay to the RSU using the 80% valuation / 20% enrollment formula versus what they pay now to the AOS using the 67% valuation / 33% enrollment formula.
All towns, with the exception of Bar Harbor, Mount Desert, and Cranberry Isles show a projected decrease.
LINKS TO LEARN MORE
Reorganization page on MDIRSS site
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