State maps school plan

Kennebec Journal, May 22, 2007

(excerpt) Senate Majority Leader Elizabeth Mitchell presented another version of school district consolidation Monday that sets different rules for rural and urban districts, while achieving $36.5 million in savings.

At the same time, the state Department of Education released a map that shows how the number of districts could be reduced from 290 to 62 if nearly all districts had a minimum of 2,500 students.

"This is one possibility," said Education Commissioner Sue Gendron. "We're trying to keep folks informed to be a catalyst for conversation."

Gendron, speaking to the Legislature's Education Committee and a room packed full of school officials, was careful to say the department was merely proposing how things might look. For example, Richmond could have been included in any one of four districts, but was placed with Pittston, Gardiner, West Gardiner and Randolph on the department map, she said.

Mitchell's proposal, which was put together by a working group that included lawmakers and interested parties, sets a goal of 80 or fewer districts.

The proposal would require all districts to vote on school district consolidation in January 2008, and to implement the consolidation by July 1 of that year.

School districts that vote not to consolidate will face "serious financial penalties," though those remain undefined at this point.