GREENSBORO – A hour-long meeting advertised to look at the future of the Mountain View Union Elementary School District (MVU) under Act 73, Sept. 11, focusing on two key questions: Should MVU remain within a Supervisory Union (SU), or would it be better to join a single-district model with one school board overseeing all schools in that district? And, if MVU remains in an SU and that SU is required to expand, which neighboring supervisory unions might be the best fit to partner with? Options include Lamoille North, Lamoille South, Caledonia North, Caledonia Central and others.
Organizers called the meeting “an important opportunity for the community to share thoughts, ask questions, and help shape the path forward.”
Board members Terri Vest, Sam Friend, Darren Usinowicz, Adam Gann, Meghan Shatney, Kyle Anderson and Heather Meacham were joined by administrators and staff, Principal Bill Deiss, Principal Beth Parker, Heather Freeman, Superintendent David Baker, Lorelei Wheeler, Marie Doane and about 16 community members
Friend opened the meeting explaining its purpose was to hear the public’s preference so the board can discuss the options at tonight’s board meeting and prepare an opinion for the state task force. She said a local preference does not guarantee that it will be what happens and invited input and questions.
Superintendent Baker clarified that the current MVU student population is approximately 1,000, with a the Act 73 legislation calling for a minimum of 4,000 and a maximum of 8,000 students for supervisory unions or districts.
Questions arose regarding the task force’s authority, the necessity of its creation and the potential consequences of not participating in the process.
Friend responded that the recommendation from the Rural Schools Alliance is that some preference should be shared so that the schools have had some voice in the process.
Concerns were raised about travel distances, local control and the financial implications of building new facilities if schools are centralized.
The audience expressed a strong preference for the supervisory union model in a vote, with 13 in favor of a supervisory union, one for a supervisory district and two abstentions.
Geographic isolation and the impracticality of travel distances were noted as reasons for the choice.
Terri Vest expressed concern with health insurance expenses, which are now controlled at the state level. From her experience, centralizing health insurance saved money for the first year and after that it did not. She said she is not convinced there will be financial savings.
In response to a question about what neighboring schools are doing, Baker said only one superintendent has gotten back to him at this time.
Several hoped MVU is rural enough that an exception can be made, especially with regard to transportation.
Baker said, it’s his experience that larger districts will likely have the loudest voices. He thinks it will be important to work with legislators as the process moves forward, particularly to emphasize that rural Vermont is different from other places in Vermont.
Vest said the OSSU Board is talking about holding forums during the fall to discuss these issues further, inviting legislators to them.
The board said they planned to prepare a statement reflecting the community’s preferences for submission to the task force, but was unable to reach consensus at its meeting following the forum. It chose instead to task Friend and Baker with sending a survey to solicit a wider response before its October meeting, using a template being used in Craftsbury.
Paul Fixx is editor of The Hardwick Gazette and lives in Hardwick.
