According to Town Manager Hollie Umphrey, this new arrangement began July 1.
“This is uncharted territory for us,” she said, “so having someone with the knowledge of what it takes for the first year or so, Dr. Johnson was a good choice.”
Johnson said — in most respects — his duties regarding Portage Lake have not changed.
“I served as superintendent for Portage Lake when they were a member of SAD 32, and under the new arrangement, I continue in that capacity,” he said. “Portage Lake students will not notice any changes in the new arrangement. But, financially there is a tremendous savings for Portage Lake taxpayers for the education of their children.”
The idea to withdraw from SAD 32 and tuition the town’s students was solely one of dollars and cents.
“In four years, Portage Lake had seen its school budget jump from an average of $356,000 to $627,000,” said Umphrey. “We were paying $627,000 to educate 35 students. That equates to almost $20,000 per student, and the state average for towns our size is approximately $8,600. We’re a small village, and we have a predominant population of retirees, which made it really tough. It was more than what they could handle. Over 60 percent of their tax bill was going to education.
“Because of the separation, we should see around a $200,000 savings. While the tuition cost would be paid through residents’ property taxes, as well as state funding, the students won’t see any difference in their education,” she said. “Their education is of the utmost importance, and we want to make sure that still continues. The only thing different will be the town’s portion of the school budget.”
Umphrey said the proposed 2012-13 municipal budget is $681,680. Having received $192,155 in state subsidies, that leaves $489,525 that the town has to raise through taxes.
A Management Services Agreement has been signed between SAD 32 and Portage Lake in the amount of $15,000 to compensate all administrative, financial, federal reporting and record keeping services.
“Under the new restructuring, SAD 32 lost two board members, going from 10 members to eight,” said Johnson, “and Portage Lake now has its own three-member school board making decisions for their community. I will continue to represent both districts.”
