SCHOOL BOARD UPDATE
From the Issue:
November 2011The board has a policy of conducting School Board meetings on a traveling basis throughout the district to enable members of the community to attend School Board meetings without having to travel to Swanzey (we normally meet in Troy in April).
In September we changed our schedule and moved our meeting in Gilsum rather than wait until the scheduled meeting date in October so that committees from both Sullivan and Gilsum could address questions they had developed about the future of their schools to the board. The meeting went well with the group. Dr. Hodgdon, Superintendent of Schools, and Jed Butterfield addressed the more complicated questions the Committees had of the board concerning accreditation and staffing in our schools and administration as well in the two northern schools. Board members answered questions as openly and candidly as I’ve ever seen. One of the community’s biggest concerns is how the Principalship of their schools will be handled now that their Principal of 27 years, Dave Moussette, is retiring in June.
The Superintendent of Schools has promised a proposal by the end of November if not sooner for the School Board to review. Settling this issue will be very important to these towns.
The purpose of these two study committees is to recommend to their respective select boards to either stay or leave the district and form their own small school districts. It certainly appears foolish from my vantage point for these two small towns to try and create their own school district however ,for the most part that’s up to them. Gilsum and Sullivan withdrawing from the Monadnock School District would have little or no negative implication for the rest of the district but it would cost them a ton of money.
The question of the status of our High School’s accreditation was already on the agenda at the request of Dr. William Felton, School Board Rep from Swanzey, when the Gilsum and Sullivan committees asked for an update on that subject as well. Jed Butterfield explained that he has been the Chairman of the NEASC Self Study Committee. There were originally three areas of deficiency, the primary being in facilities. The facilities issues are largely complete, curriculum and staffing issues seem to be under control as well. It is worth noting that Monadnock Regional High School was THE HIGHEST SCORING HIGH SCHOOL IN CHESHIRE COUNTY in the most recent NECAP tests scoring well above the state average. Overall our students did an outstanding job in the most recent round of testing including Elementary, Middle School and High School. It is expected by the High School Administration and the School Board that the MRHS accreditation will be off probationary status in six months to a year.
The School Budget Committee presented a proposal to reduce the School District’s Operating Budget by 4% in the next school year. The School Board’s initial reaction was one of surprise. While this may not sound like much coming on several years of tight spending it’s not immediately clear how we would achieve that level of reduction in the District’s Operating Budget. The School Board expects to meet with the Budget Committee in conference two or three times and see if we can find the Budget Committee’s number without damaging what is rapidly becoming a very successful school district. To be sure there was a surplus last year and there were some large one time costs that needed to be paid including a deficiency left over from the prior administration and we are actively and aggressively pursuing grants to help cover some unique cost such as the SRO at the High School so it is possible that we can come up with a significant reduction without cutting into current operational levels.
The Budget process is to be continued. We hope to be settled on a final number to bring before the voters by the end of the year. Public participation at the Budget Committee meetings is appreciated and invaluable when it comes to the difficult job of making choices on what to add and what to cut.