Great posts, Jonanna and Kyle, regarding tomorrow's critical meeting and school governance vote. Don't worry about the buses, though. They'll run even if we have to drive them, by golly!
Below is the U-32 Board's posting regarding this matter, written by Calais sage, Scott Thompson. See you tomorrow. Best regards, Charlie
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Please vote your school budgets on Tuesday April 9!
On April 3 the U-32 board held its public forum for the 2019-20 middle and high school budget, which is to be voted on Tuesday April 9. East Montpelier, Middlesex, and Worcester will be voting their elementary school budgets the same day. (Berlin and Calais voted theirs on town meeting day — but we still need Berlin and Calais voters on April 9 for the U-32 budget.)
We regret any confusion or inconvenience this causes you. The forced merger and the legal appeal challenging it have thrown timelines and expectations into a state of deep uncertainty. We're trying to cover all eventualities in order to prevent even worse confusion and inconvenience down the road. Thank you for bearing with us.
As we have mentioned before, our total increase in education spending is 2.99% over last year. Because we anticipate fewer students next year, education spending per equalized pupil is projected to rise by 4.17%. We're having to lay off staff in order to keep the increase down. Our guiding principle is to retain licensed teachers to the extent possible, which we are doing.
The U-32 board has also listened to parents, teachers, and students who have reacted with dismay to the proposed elimination of the math white table position. We shall be reviewing this personnel cut at our next meeting in early May. If we restore the position, a non-personnel budget cut will be necessary in order to compensate.
Once you've marked your calendars to vote on Tuesday April 9, please also jot down 6:00 p.m. on Monday April 8 at U-32 for the re-warned meeting to organize the merged five-town school district. This is a historic occasion. It is also a lot of public school business for you to have to deal with in a compressed period of time. But we need you — and more important, the next generation needs you.
Your U-32 representatives welcome hearing from you any time with regard to the budget or any other matter of concern.
Jan 24, 2025, 8 AM to 3 PM
Saturday Edition of Our Baby & Caregiver MeetupJan 25, 2025, 10 AM to 12 PM
Doktor Kaboom's Under PressureJan 26, 2025, 3:30 PM