SCHOOL BOARD MEETING TONIGHT, THE 25TH

The SAD 63 School Board will be gathering for its monthly Do Nothing gathering tonight at the Eddington Elementary School - at 6:30pm. First thing on the agenda is to elect a new Chair (one would think the election of a new Vice Chair should have been considered when the agenda was being put together - just in case the current Vice Chair, Therese Anderson, was elected Chair, but maybe certain people on the Board didn't think that would happen). Do we smell another Holden "fix" in the works?

In looking at the proposed agenda, it is "interesting" to note that for another month there is absolutely nothing regarding the initiation of any Regional Planning Committee meeting for the RSU (or AOS). Seems I recall Ray Hart pointing out some months ago that the voters should be voting in February to approve a proposed RSU (developed by the multi-community RPCs) that is supposed to go into effect by July 1, 2010 (a little over five months from now).

At this point, with no RSU or AOS to vote on (because there have been no RPC meetings to work on such a product), the state, that is looking for every penny it can save, will be in a position to levy the $167,000 penalty on SAD 63 for failing to consolidate. Of course, that penalty will not be paid out of the pockets/checkbooks or savings of the eight school board members. It will be added to the $125,000 we taxpayers in Eddington, Clifton and Holden will see in our property tax bills (the latter being our portion of the recent settlement agreement with the former superintendent, Louise Regan). And that's just for starters.

By this coming November when the new Governor and Legislature takes their offices, the state of Maine's projected deficit will be $1,000,000 (one million dollars) - twice the amount the Legislature is wrestling with right now. That bombshell was delivered at the January luncheon of the Maine Heritage Policy Center.

Following tonight's Board meeting, the Board plans to conduct an Executive Session to discuss development of next year' budget, what they need to do regarding the initiation of a teachers' contract and a search for a short-term Interim Superintendent. (Seems Ray Hart didn't seem to think adding the issue of the current Business Manager's contract ALSO expiring June 30, 2010 merited inclusion to be discussed in the Executive Session. Not that the Acting Chair, Therese Anderson, or any other Board member notified the Board Secretary to include that item...)

With the State cutting back over $340,000-$355,000 from their share of this district's current (2009-2010) school budget, and even less to be expected from the State next year (not to mention deducting the $167,000) from whatever they "plan to allocate" (which is not the same as what they'll eventually deliver), any SAD 63 teachers' contract will be lucky to equal what the past one has been - salaries and benefits combined. But everyone can forget any increases. Which is why anyone who thinks there doesn't need to be the same facilitator sitting in on these negotiations has his head up a very dark place (or is bucking for a paid consultant position with the teachers' union). The facilitator who kept things realistic the last time saved this district a lot of money when the union representative came in with a List of Expectations that equaled what teachers in the Brewer school district received. It would be good to remember that the teachers in the Orrington school district, where property has a higher state valuation than any of the towns in SAD 63, receive lower compensation than the teachers in SAD 63.

As far any search for an Interim Superintendent is concerned, the first place to start would be a conversation with the Interim Superintendent currently serving the Otis school district.

And last but not least, since this Board should be talking about reducing school budget costs, let them start with some realities regarding the current Business Manager, Yvonne Mitchell, who is currently paid more than $70,000 a year.

There hasn't been a Financial Statement provided since September, and that includes the packets the members of the Board received in preparation for tonight's meeting. And yet, her supervisor, the Interim Superintendent, prepared and read aloud at a recent School Board meeting a Letter of Commendation lauding the Business Manager's performance including her preparation of monthly financial statements. (Guess he failed to remember the five months last year when she didn't produce any then, either.)

BTW - The Business Manager at UTC produces monthly financial reports that are in excess of 70 pages in length - every month. The UTC Business Manager is paid approximately one-half what Ms. Mitchell is paid. And the UTC Business Manager doesn't have a Part-Time assistant to help her, unlike Ms. Mitchell. Seems to this writer, we could save a lot of school budget money by hiring the UTC Business Manager effective July 1, 2010. We'd be getting a more productive employee and we could probably hire that individual for significantly less than what we're paying Ms. Mitchell.

In Summary - there is significant work to be done by the members of the SAD 63 board. One wonders when they plan to get started?

When talking this past week with parents of some students enrolled at the Eddington School, the parents were shocked to learn nothing has been done regarding the formation of an RSU. They were even more shocked to learn that Orrington and Dedham have officially filed Letters of Intent of consolidate without joining with SAD 63 or CSD 8. Perhaps the individual school newsletters should start communicating directly with the parents of the students in this district to let them know just how ineffective their elected school board is performing. This news is certainly more important that the latest cookie fundraiser.