You are not limited to attending the meeting in your town only - come to any of the meetings and ask as many questions as you would like. This is an important issue and you can make an informed vote!
Did you miss an important Public Information Meeting? Watch it here.
February 15, 2017
Dear Community
Members,
This is the follow
up from our first three community forums.
Below are the questions that have been asked at the meetings and their
answers. If you have questions that are
not answered here please come to the Public Information meetings on Feb. 20th
in Windham and March 1st at L&G.
Q: How will
transportation work?
A: Transportation planning is one of the first responsibilities of the new
board. We cannot say what it will look
like at this point.
Q: Do taxes change
after 4 years?
A: We know we have the incentives for the first four years. After the first 4 years we don’t know.
Q: Is there one
board for all that schools K-12?
A: Yes. The current board remain until
July 1, 2019. After that the new unified
board would take over with the current district boards remaining in existence
until they wrap up their affairs.
Q: Will schools be
closed?
A: Article 14 requires a vote of the town to close a school. A school can close but it will not happen
without the consent of the town involved.
Q: What is the
composition of the board?
A: Representation is based on population: Newfane - 3, Brookline - 1, Townshend
- 2, Jamaica - 2, Windham - 1 and 2 at large members elected from the entire
district once it is formed.
Q: What if there is
no petition filed to be on the ballot for the new board?
A: There can be a write in candidate. If
no one is elected the town board can appoint a member to the new board.
Q: How does
consolidation affect hosting Pre-K?
A: The new board will determine how Pre-K will be offered district wide.
Q: How will this be
changed by any new legislation during the current sessions in Montpellier?
A: As of right now only deadlines for compliance are proposed to be changed.
Q: What happens if
there is a "no" vote?
A: The Towns can ask the state to stay in the structure we have, but it is
unlikely they will let us. It is most likely they will want us to go with the
plan we've created as they have already approved it.
Q: In the new
structure, will there be an Annual School Meeting on Town Meeting Day?
A: No. There will be a separate annual meeting for the district, much like the
system L&G uses now.
Q: Where would the
"center of the Universe" be for this district?
A: That will be decided by what is most practical for the new Board.
Q: When will the
school choice within the district first be available and what will the process
be?
A: The new Board will have to come up with a system for it, but the earliest it
might be available is September 2019.
Q: Does the
district have enough students to meet the State's size requirements?
A: Yes, because we would be forming a “side by side” with the new River Valley
Unified School District – comprised of Dover, Marlboro and Wardsboro.
Q: What does
representation look like on the new board if a town opts out of the
consolidation?
A: Representation stays the same as shown in the report as the opted out town
still sits on the board for matters related to L&G. (See Article 17.) An opt out town however will not vote on the
at-large members starting March 2018.
The opt out may become moot if the State Board of Education, in their
statewide plan, moves towns in union high school districts into a unified
system.
Q: If the WRED
forms does the LGUMHS cease to exist as a legal entity?
A: Yes, as well as all the town school districts voting to join the unified
district.
Q: How is this
possible as the towns that vote to form it should need to vote to dissolve it?
A: The articles call for the dissolving of districts if the unified district is
formed. A yes vote forms the unified district and dissolves the existing
district simultaneously. The articles specify the start date for the unified
district and the ending date for the town boards of the member districts. (See
Article 13.)
Q: Will the WRED
have a new or different annual meeting date?
A: The unified district board can set meeting dates as it desires. Decisions by the voters of the entire unified
district are needed to change the voting process (to or from Australian ballot)
to something different than specified in the articles.
You can also watch
the videos of the forums we have held at www.brattleborotv.org/watch/meetings
Consolidation now, by our own design,
is our best choice. Remember to vote
March 7, 2017. Polls open 9am -7pm.
Thank you, The Act
46 Study Committee
Complete archive of
the Study Committee’s work --
www.wcsu-lgtowns.blogspot.com
If
you have questions or comments please contact a study committee member listed
below.
Joe Winrich
Townshend Patti
Dickson, Jamaica
Brud Sanderson, Townshend Carolyn
Partridge, Windham
Drew Hazelton, Jamaica Emily
Long, Newfane
Erin Zargo, Brookline Heidi
Russ, Townshend
Ian Doak, Newfane Kelli
Warriner, Newfane
Ken McFadden, Newfane Kris Jerz, Townshend
Neil Pelsue, Newfane Pam
Tweedy, Jamaica
Sherry Greene, Brookline
Public information
forums will be held as follows:
Windham February 20, 2017, 6:00 at the Windham Elementary School
Final meeting March 1, 2017 at 7:00 pm at Leland & Gray
A letter to Voters in Brookline, Jamaica, Newfane, Townshend and Windham from the Committee Members. The information below was mailed to the voters directly in January, 2017.
Dear Community Members,
On December 20th, the Leland & Gray Towns Act 46 Study
Committee’s consolidation report and proposed Articles of Agreement were
approved by the Vermont State Board of Education (BOE). The approval allows the
Study Committee to bring our proposal to the voters in our five towns for a vote
on March 7th. Our previous informational letters, as well as the proposed
Articles of Agreement, can be found on the windhamcentralboard.org website for
your review.
On March 7th, Town Meeting Day, you will get a ballot with the two
articles asking whether to consolidate the Newfane, Brookline, Townshend,
Jamaica, Windham and Leland & Gray Union Districts into a single unified
district and, if consolidated, who will serve as Directors representing your
town on the new district board.
Voting
“Yes” on the consolidation question means:
• We will have one single board with representation based on
population: Newfane - 3, Brookline - 1, Townshend - 2, Jamaica - 2, Windham - 1
and 2 at large members elected from the entire district once it is formed.
• Day to day operation of our schools will not change. They will continue to
provide a high quality education for our students.
• Students will continue going to their town’s elementary school, and then to
Leland & Gray.
• All of our children will be eligible to participate in the elementary school
choice program and the existing, statewide, 9-12 public high school choice
program.
• All five schools will have a school-based advisory committee that will
provide feedback to the new, larger board on issues and concerns that are
important to their school and town. The membership of these committees is
expected to include parents, townspeople, the principal, a member of the board
from that town, and any others concerned with the operation of the school.
• There will be a single homestead tax rate that reflects the costs of
educating all of the pre-k through 12 grade students in our five towns,
including Leland & Gray. These tax rates will differ the first few years
because the legislature limited both increases and decreases to 5% annually
from your current 15/16 tax rate. Town tax rates will still be adjusted by your
town’s CLA.
• Consolidation will minimize fluctuating tax rates that result from
year-to-year changes in a town’s student population. The new district will have
approximately 628 students; a change of 10-15 students will have a much smaller
effect on the larger district than on our current smaller districts.
• The new district will have $211,436 in small school grants that Townshend,
Jamaica and Windham currently receive continued as merger grants. Additionally,
we will receive $150,000 to help with the organizational costs of the new
district and we will receive decreasing annual tax breaks for four years
starting with 8 cents.
A “No”
vote means:
• The proposed unified District will not replace the five district
system currently in place. It will not
mean that consolidation goes away. Act 46 mandates consolidation by 2018 or the
State BOE has the authority to consolidate us with whichever district they
choose in 2019.
• A “no” vote may mean giving up our choice on how we consolidate.
• With the Articles of Agreement that will be voted upon on Town Meeting Day,
there are significant protections for each of our schools and towns against an
unwanted school closure. This will most likely not be the case if we are joined
to another district by the State BOE.
We think consolidation now, by
our own design, is our best choice. Our next letter will include answers to
questions that are asked at the community forums that have been scheduled for
January and February. Please come to one or more ask your questions and we will
answer them.
Thank you,
The Act 46 Study Committee
If you have questions or comments
please get in touch with a study committee member listed below.
Joe Winrich Townshend Patti
Dickson, Jamaica
Brud Sanderson, Townshend Carolyn
Partridge, Windham
Drew Hazelton, Jamaica Emily
Long, Newfane
Erin Zargo, Brookline Heidi
Russ, Townshend
Ian Doak, Newfane Kelli
Warriner, Newfane
Ken McFadden, Newfane Kris
Jerz, Townshend
Neil Pelsue, Newfane Pam
Tweedy, Jamaica
Sherry Greene, Brookline
