Hill School Board picks Newfound as new home for grade 6-12 students Email Published Date Friday, 12 December 2014 01:22 Find nearby stories PointsMentioned MapNews Bayou By Thomas P. Caldwell HILL — Following an inconclusive public hearing at which residents were divided over which option to recommend, the Hill School Board voted on Dec. 10 to pursue a tuition agreement with the Newfound Area School District, to begin with the 2015-16 academic year. Hill residents had earlier voted to investigate ending their longstanding Authorized Regional Enrollment Area (AREA) agreement with Franklin due to a perceived lack of academic rigor and the financial pressure on the schools from the citys tax cap. Hill would plan to remain with School Administrative Unit 18, but would send students to another school district if it proved feasible. Initially showing an interest in accepting Hill students were Newfound, Merrimack Valley, and Franklin. Winnisquam did not submit a letter of interest because of time constraints but subsequently indicated an interest in accommodating Hill. Merrimack Valley, however, dropped out of the running. Newfound had presented the most comprehensive package and the Hill board was leaning toward that district due to geographic proximity and existing connections — Hill families participate in activities at Bristols Tapply-Thompson Community Center and know many of the families there. Just prior to Wednesdays meeting, however, the board received bad news financially: Tuition to send 65 Hill students to Newfound would cost $839,917, with tuition to the middle school being $12,294 per student and the high school tuition being $13,243 per student. Hill currently pays $11,191 in tuition for Franklin Middle School and $9,089 for students at Franklin High. Even more disturbing was the figure coming out of Franklin. Because of an overall decrease in the number of students in Franklin schools, combined with an increase in the operating budget, Franklins middle school tuition next year would be $11,564.71, while the high school tuition would be $14,195.90, resulting in a total tuition cost of $864,847.32 — the highest of the three districts competing. Winnisquam came in significantly lower, at $712,918, with tuition rates of $11,953 at the middle school and $10,484 at the high school. Looking at it from a purely financial angle, Hill resident Paula McDonough said Winnisquams offer would make the most sense. She noted that the majority of Hill residents are older and on fixed incomes and she said they probably would turn down a proposal that involved Newfound or Franklin. Others in the audience were more concerned with academic offerings, athletics, and the percentage of students going on to college from the three school districts. When the school board was unable to answer many of the questions, people suggested postponing a decision until representatives from the various schools could be there to answer them. Chair Shelly Henry pointed out that time constraints make that difficult, since they need to have a tuition agreement ready for budget purposes by mid-January, and to have a warrant article for the school district meeting just weeks later. Board members later said they also wanted to avoid a dog and pony show where the various school districts would be trying to sell their schools. Hopes for some kind of consensus in the audience to help make the school boards decision easier soon faded as speakers chose different schools to support. Many said that, for all its problems, Franklin still provided a good education and that many graduates went on to college and to good careers. Others supported Newfound for its modern facilities, broad curriculum, and the best test scores of any of the three districts under consideration. Winnisquam test scores are only marginally behind Newfounds, and the school offers a wider range of classes and more sports than Newfound. While it is more distant than Franklin or Newfound, that additional distance is not much more than a mile. Some parents were concerned about moving students to a new district. Hill wants to allow students in grades 10, 11, and 12 to remain and graduate from Franklin High if they wish, while students in grades 6 through 9 would be required to attend the new school district. That troubled some who said it would be a big adjustment for the younger children to be thrust into an entirely new environment. It was for that reason that many supported going with Newfound, since they already have some ties with the Newfound towns. Another reason is a longstanding rivalry with Winnisquam that might make integration there more difficult. Those concerned about school safety pointed out that both Franklin and Winnisquam have school resource officers, while Newfound does not. Nancy Coffin, vice-chair of the school board, said having an education leader was important and she noted that Winnisquams superintendent has been there six years and just signed a new, two-year contract. Franklin has had several superintendents over the past few years and is doing a new superintendent search now; while Newfounds superintendent is in her second year there. The stability of the educational leader is important, she said. Noting that she works at Winnisquam, Coffin said she nevertheless originally supported Newfound. But I did not expect Winnisquam to come in this low. And they do offer the most educationally. Resident Gerard Desrochers commented, In the entire history of the AREA agreement, Ive never seen a 50 percent increase. But I have to wonder about Winnisquams tuition rate, long-term. Im concerned that their proposal allows for a rate change after their school district meeting. Well have developed a budget based on the tuition rate they quoted, and if it goes up, what are we to do? Desrochers continued, Im also concerned about Newfound. Franklin has had a tax cap for years, while Newfound has been under a cap for only two years. They had some severe decisions to make at the start of the year, and were saved because the revenues increased, but that might not happen in the coming year. Their tax cap is not tied to the cost of living, so it could be a big problem. He concluded, Maybe the devil you know is better than the devil you dont know. A straw poll of the audience, after several Franklin supporters had already left, showed six supporting Franklin, nine supporting Newfound, and six supporting Winnisquam. Superintendent Robert McKenney later addressed Franklins increase, saying, I sit here stunned. If we were going to fudge the numbers to win your support, we wouldnt have come up with this. He said he went over the numbers with Business Administrator Amanda Bergquist to be sure they were right, and then again with Mike ONeill, the former business administrator, and was assured that the calculation was correct, according to the existing AREA agreement. Board member December Fortin commented, I think theres more potential with Newfound. I dont see that emotional connection with Winnisquam. When Henry finally made the motion to enter into negotiations with Newfound, all three board members voted in the affirmative.
Posted on: Mon, 15 Dec 2014 10:24:43 +0000