The Wiscasset Educational Research Panel, the group tasked by the Wiscasset Board of Selectmen to investigate options for withdrawal from RSU 12, presented its findings to a well-attended board meeting Feb. 21.
Speaking before the board, WERP Chairman Doug Smith said RSU 12’s cost allocation formula was unfair in relation to Wiscasset’s student count and median family income.
While Wiscasset pays 35 percent of the RSU’s local additional funding requirements, Smith said, it has only 23 percent of the students and ranks seventh out of eight towns in median family income.
The 35 percent cost allocation was shown in relation to a gradually falling student population in Wiscasset schools, which were shown to be smaller than previously estimated four years ago.
“No matter how low our student count goes, our contribution is fixed at 35 percent,” Smith said.
Concluding his presentation, Smith recommended Wiscasset join an Alternative Organization Structure (AOS) in conjunction with a consolidation of Wiscasset schools. The AOS structure, he said, was widely praised throughout the state.
An AOS structure allows individual towns to maintain control over their own school systems while enjoying the benefit of a shared central administration with other members of the AOS.
“We talked to a number of AOS’ around the state,” Smith said, “In every one of our discussions, they like the AOS structure. We did not hear one complaint from one town, one superintendent – from anybody about the structure.”
Citing a $75,000 study conducted by the engineering firm Stephen Blatt Architects and Engineers in 2008, Smith said the Wiscasset school system was found to have some 38,000-sq.ft. of excess space in its schools. The high school, which was built for 450 students, now only houses 180.
“By far and away, the biggest driver of our school expenses today, is maintaining and operating these large buildings that are inefficient and underutilized,” Smith said.
Citing the same study, Smith said that an estimated $1 million per year would be saved by consolidating into two schools, or 27 percent of Wiscasset’s net annual education costs.
Smith cautioned that RSU 12 was already exploring closing the middle school, and that if such a thing was done as part of the school unit, most of the savings from the closure would be transferred to the RSU, not Wiscasset.
Smith said the RSU has a 3 percent safety net policy that caps potential savings from any one town.
Selectman Ed Polewarczyk, in a heated exchange, contested some of the data presented by Smith to the selectmen.
While he agreed that Wiscasset does indeed pay 35 percent of the RSU’s additional funding with only 23 percent of the students, Polewarczyk indicated that WERP’s presented data omitted the total cost it takes to educate a Wiscasset student. While Wiscasset’s contribution per student is $9707, its expense per student is roughly $18,000.
“We’re paying far less than what it actually costs to educate our students,” Polewarczyk said.
Polewarczyk attributed the high expense per student to the expensive school system created in the days of Maine Yankee’s operation.
Polewarczyk also challenged Smith’s claim that $1 million per year would be realized if Wiscasset schools were consolidated, and that the quality of education would improve if it were to occur.
Polewarczyk, who said he conducted his only analysis, estimated that only $350,000 would be saved.
Wiscasset RSU 12 Board member Kim Andersson, speaking during the public comment portion of the presentation agreed with Polewarczyk.
“To say that Wiscasset is funding the education in the northern towns is false,” Andersson said, “In fact, it’s the opposite.”
Andersson said that Wiscasset benefits from towns like Windsor, who receive large subsidies from the state.
Andersson also challenged Smith’s interpretation of the RSU’s safety net provisions in relation to the closing of the middle school, saying that the safety net only applies to changes in the cost allocation formula.
Before the board opened discussion to the public, Polewarczyk warned that leaving the RSU would create a $2 million shortfall that the town would need to be made up with taxes.
“I’m really concerned that would mean a significant increase in taxes to the voters of Wiscasset,” Polewarczyk said, who warned trying to make up $2 million would translate into a 30 percent increase in taxes.
Concluding, Polewarczyk requested time at a future date to present his own research to the town. Polewarczyk said he had met with officials at the Dept. of Education and attended both WERP and RSU 12 meetings.
While debate over WERP’s data consumed much of the board’s meeting, part of the group’s purpose for speaking before the board was to request an article be placed on the June warrant asking townspeople for their approval to allow the selectmen to create a panel to negotiate a withdrawal from RSU 12.
WERP recently submitted a petition to the town office requesting such a vote. The petition was certified by Town Clerk Christine Wolfe Feb. 8.
If voters approve the article, the Dept. of Education must formally ask the Wiscasset Board of Selectmen to create a withdrawal panel consisting of one municipal officer, one member of the general public, one member of the group submitting the withdrawal petition, and one member of the RSU’s Wiscasset delegation.
Should the panel develop a plan for withdrawal, it goes to the DOE for approval. The DOE has 60 days to then approve or deny the withdrawal committee’s recommendations. If the DOE approves the plan, two-thirds of Wiscasset voters must agree to withdraw from the RSU in a referendum election.
The board voted unanimously, 4-0, to place such an article on the town warrant. Selectman David Nichols, husband of WERP member Sharon Nichols, was not present at Tuesday’s meeting.
WERP recommended the town consult with Deputy Commissioner of Education Jim Rier over a suitable figure to allocate to the withdrawal committee should it be created, but estimated the amount to be roughly $45,000. The amount includes architectural fees, potential legal expenses, and fees for consultants.
The board agreed to determine a figure during upcoming budget discussions. Withdrawal committee costs will be included in the June warrant article authorized by the board Feb. 21.