Out and About Town This Past Week

Flags are flying from telephone poles just in time for this Rememberance holiday. Did you know that was the original name for what we now know as Memorial Day? Rememberance Day - in honor of and rememberance of all those service men and women in all five branches (Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard) who have served and defended us - our country - protected us and our freedoms, often at the very cost of their lives since the original colonists declared WE, THE PEOPLE. In return for their sacrifices - not just their lives but their sacrifices while serving - the pain, the conditions of war, the terror, the day in and day out deprivation of conditions (mud, freezing cold, the lack of food, water, medical supplies or care) - WE THE PEOPLE owe them - our respect, our appreciation, our commitment to honor those sacrifices. So I hope somehow WE THE PEOPLE will stop and actually see those flags and think what they represent. A lot of blood has been shed for over 200 years so that they can still wave right here at home.

The show tonight at the Clewley Farm Restaurant with Woody Woodman is expected to be so popular that some folks are calling in to make reservations. Hearing that yesterday, I made mine. According to Bob and Lonnie, we can expect a keyboard, drums, Woody on his saxaphone and on the vocals, Dea on the vocals and who knows what else. There'll be jazz and some oldies - some of the "good stuff" as I call it. They sent me home with one of Woody's CDs so I'd know what I could tell you to expect.

A mighty fine Lobster Roll can be found at Pete's Pretty Good ice Cream on IA in Holden (just before Hummingbird Hollow - just west of Highway 46 traveling down from Brewer through Holden if you're new to the area). Pete's is on the left - a drive in spot with plenty of parking. For $8.99, the price can't be beat. They're not stingy with the lobster meat either. Traditional with just mayonaise in a grilled hot dog bun with just a little lettuce (for the crunch, donchaknow), it's perfect and filling. As for the ice cream... The good news is that it's not Hoods. It you've been following, you know why I'm boycotting Hood products. If you don't know - screen back a few blogs to the article re: the Best Strawberry Ice Cream - which is STILL THE BEST, BTW. To be fair, I tested Pete's strawberry - not even close to Sugar Maple Creamery's found at Clewley's which is chock full of strawberries and the right color to be strawberry.

The heroes at the Monday night School Board meeting were all from Eddingon.

Ralph Russell, former School Superintendent, is the Eddington Delegate to the Citizens' Advisory Budget and Finance Committee (and Chair). He pointed out to the members of the Board that in their (end of the evening) scheduled Executive Session it was noted they would be discussing employment and evaluations (which means raises and contracts for those employees who have them in the district, such as the school principals, the operations/maintenance supervisor, and the business manager, etc.). Ralph pointed out that should the district vote to consolidate (at some point following the November general election), Central Office positions are a primary area targeted for consolidation. Therefore, any existing contracts that are slated to expire in 2010 should not be extended for multiple years since that could put the district in a position of having to pay for an individual's contract past their employment in a new consolidated RSU. (Remember the situation we would have been in with Ms. Regan if we had consolidated with Brewer and things had been "normal".) Wise counsel from a former superintendent and current advisor. (Not that the School Board appears to have taken it when it came to the Business Manager whose contract WAS slated to expire 6/30/09 BUT will continue for another three years IF the proposed budget is approved!) In light of the stated opinion by the current Interim Superintendent, Mr. Hart, that he believes the people of the State of Maine will vote to mandate consolidation this was all the more shocking.

Therese Anderson and Karen Clark, both Eddington School Board reps, thought it would be wise to have a document read in toto before the Board signed it after Mr. Hart presented as his "short and sweet" Superintendent's report. Seems the Town Manager of Fairfield had sent out a petition requesting the School Board to support placing LD285 on emergency status in the State Legislature (the legislative Finance committee had given it a "No" vote). The effect of LD285 would delay the collections for two years the penalties being assessed for those school districts that failed to consolidate this past year. The rationale for the delay was this would reduce the property tax burdens being placed on towns and any subsequent of cutting of services. Sounded like good reasons to sign the petition as Mr. Hart presented his summary. BUT, Karen felt the Board should read the actual petition before deciding whether or not to sign it. (Seems Mr. Hart had had the petition for over a week and could have had it included in the Board members packets so that the members could have read it in preparation of the meeting.) After Robert Kiah, rep from Holden, read the document aloud so that all Board members could hear it, Therese questioned whether LD285 meant the penalties would be accruing (meaning adding up) for the two years and then become due (which would mean a $326,000 bill to SAD63 in two years) or whether it meant the State would not start assessing the penalties until 2011 (which is when the current Governor plans to have the State cut another $70 million from state funding to schools). Since the petition was unclear (and frankly I don't think either option was beneficial to the school districts), the Board voted to take no action leaving the matter where individuals could write letters to Senator Rosen or House Rep. Pratt if they so chose.

But for Therese and Karen, I have no doubt that the Board would have followed Mr. Hart's "short and sweet" (but not well thought through) suggestion that they sign the petition which would not have been in the district taxpayers' welfare.

That's not to say that the rest of the School Board meeting was commendary. I find it amazing to see so many Board committees not conducting any meetings.

Why, with two teachers on it, has the Curriculum Committee not met in (what?) a year?

If the people of the state (or the Legislature) mandate school consolidation after November's election, shouldn't this district be ready with a plan? And yet this School Board's RSU committee consistently fails to set any committee meeting date. (Brewer certainly had an alternative plan because they went right ahead with their "Plan B" and got it approved - to consolidate with Orrington - right after the other plan failed.)

When does the Operations Committee plan to meet?

At least the Technology Committee has an excuse - it is out for the summer and George Cummings, the technology coordinator ran a workshop this past Friday at the Eddingtton School. BTW, Mr. Cummings consistently receives high praise from everyone.

Why was there no report from the Director of Pupil Services? Especially from the Director of Special Ed considering 17% of the student population are Special Ed/Special Needs according to Mr. Hart's office (and costing over $1 million of the school budget). BTW, a parent from Clifton recently called me to state that she can never get anyone from her child's school to actually talk to her (human being to human being) re: her child. The parent is constantly told to send email messages (which the parent states are always returned - but that's not the point. It's the human contact people need. The parent believes it's because the teachers just want to go home and not be available. Well, if we're going to be totally computer communications, maybe we should just contract with Microsoft and Google and forget about teacher contracts. Especially when it comes to the Secial Ed/Special Needs programs.

At least this month all Board members were in attendance. It was the last meeting for Robert Kiah from Holden who will be replaced next month by Kevin Mills, the newly elected Rep. A new face - an independent mind. Maybe he would be a good candidate for Board Chair. Someone objective. As least that might be the perception (to use one of Ms. Ellis's words.) I recall one of my supervisor's training classes built on the truism: "Perception is Reality."

New policies were adopted - for Fiscal Accounting and Reporting, and for payment Procedures. Additionally we, the public, found out that SAD63 will be contributing $10,780. on a one-time basis to UTC to help cover a financial error that occured last year but was not discovered until this year. All school districts that send students to UTC will be contributing to address this error on a fixed percentage basis. When I asked if this $10,780 was already in the proposed SAD63 2009-2010 budget, I was told it was. Funny how that was not explained or noted at the may 16 meeting. We should be sure to remember it is not a figure to be rolled over and added to next year.

The teachers' union has sent its 120 day notice pertaining to its contracts which expire in August 2010. This means negotiations will need to begin at some point down the line. Just another reason why the RSU Committee should be meeting!

Last but not least - the cost of the on-going lawsuit re: the former superintendent. I waited through the entire agenda to see if I would hear any kind of explanation for why the current Chair, Mr. Varnum, told the public at the May 13 meeting that the lawsuit has cost $160,000. to date. His "Chair's Report" was practically non-existent. So before the Board went into its last Executive Session (re: Disciplining, duties, employment, contracts, etc. see above), there were "Questions and Comments from the Public" - and I had 3 questions (sufficient to give Ms. Ellis a religious experience and make Ms. Mitchell defensive - as always).

I pointed out that even the Bangor Daily News has printed (and the April School Board had reported) bills had been received in the amount of $219,750.87. That was certainly more than $160,000. so how could he give such misinformation. Again, we received the standard "apology" from Mr. Varnum which has become old news. He then reported that, since the April Board, during which it was reported that the insurance policy had paid $61,345.10, the insurance policy has now paid $94,392.70. (One has to wonder why that was not in the Chair's report in the first place - as though we taxpayers aren't interested/entitled to that information. We're the ones who will have to pay the bill one way of another.)

And speaking of lawsuits - why is the Board tolerating the refusal of the Business Manager to provide the requested documentation showing whether or not federal and state taxes, as well as F.I.C.A. deductions were paid out of the bonuses she received for the past four or five (?) years as an employee of the school district. Perhaps there is a Conflict of Interest that the Interim Superintendent is providing the Business Manager's job evaluation considering he's only on the job not much more than one day or two (at the most) each week, not to mention that he hired her boss (the former superintendent) who insisted on the hiring of the current Business Manager. Talk about a nexus. The bonus clause should never have been allowed in the first place (and it seems the Board, as a whole, never did approve it). The taxes and F.I.C.A. are legal requirements (funny that only the Business Manager is thought to be able to provide the info. How about the contracted payroll services or what the bonus check an "under the table" gratuity?) There is a Freedom of Information Act and, if need be, perhaps we need to take this issue to a higher level before the IRS and other legal authorities decide to take legal action against SAD63 just because the Board has an employee who doesn't seem to think she has to answer to her employee. Could it be she thinks she has a Godfather? And maybe the Board needs some backbone - unless it wants to deal with the IRS and the State of Maine.