SAD 70 mulls AOS options

By Joseph Cyr
Staff Writer
    HODGDON — Exactly how much money has SAD 70 saved since merging with SAD 14 to form an Alternative Organizational Structure?
    That was the question being asked Oct. 9 by members of the SAD 70 school board.
    SAD 70 (Hodgdon, Amity, New Limerick, Linneus, Ludlow, Haynesville and Cary), Orient, Bancroft and SAD 14 (Danforth) came together to form an AOS in February of 2011 by a referendum vote of 252-77. The AOS was created as part of a statewide school consolidation initiative that forced smaller schools to come together in order to avoid penalties from the state.
    The theory was, by consolidating, school districts could save money by having one administration oversee mulitple school districts. That savings, however, has not materialized, at least not for SAD 70.
    “The bottom line is it is costing us more for this district to be part of the AOS,” said board chairman Estela Lane.
    The board reviewed material from SAD 70 Business Manager Sue Hawkes which stated belonging to the AOS actually cost SAD 70 $29,394 more in the 2012-13 school year.
    “And for that extra $29,000 we now have a superintendent that is only here three days a week,” added board member Joel Oliver. “It doesn’t seem to make a whole lot of sense. The reason we got into the AOS was to save on our penalties. The state did away with those penalties. It seems to me that it would make good sense to go back to having our own full-time superintendent (by withdrawing from the AOS).
    By forming a consolidated school district, SADs 70 and 14 kept their separate school boards and have control over all aspects of their schools. An AOS board, comprised of members from each area, was created for the sole purpose of governing the combined central offices. SAD 70 has seven members on the AOS board, while SAD 14 has two. Orient and Bancroft, who tuition their students, each have one board member.
    Bob McDaniel was hired as the superintendent for the AOS and has since split his time between the two offices. A decision was made not to close either Superintendent’s Office, which could have resulted in additional savings. McDaniel now spends three days in Hodgdon and two days in Danforth. Special Education Director Cynthia McNutt also shares her time between the two school systems.
    Oliver said the AOS board would soon begin planning for next year’s (2013-14) school budget, so if SAD 70 was interested in pulling out it should do so before those budget plans begin.
    The two school districts had a consensus agreement that they would give the AOS two years before making a decision on whether to continue or dissolve the agreement. That two-year period expires at the end of the 2012-13 school year.
    “This is only an informational item at this point,” said Lane. “We need to discuss what course we want to go with.”
    It was suggested that the AOS board should have a chance to hear all of the concerns about remaining with the consolidation before SAD 70 took any action on the matter.
    In order to leave an AOS, McDaniel said a decision had to be made 60 days prior to the start of the next fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2013. A public hearing and referendum would also need to be held to dissolve the AOS.
    In other agenda items, the board gave its unanimous approval to create a Hodgdon High School Hall of Fame to recognize the efforts of past student athletes. Robbie Smith and Kara Wright gave a short presentation on how there was an interest in creating a Hall of Fame at the school for athletes, coaches, as well as a yearly “Spirit of the Community” award.
    The criteria of eligibility for student athletes is:
    • Nominees are to have lettered in a varsity sport for two or more years at Hodgdon High School.
    • Nominees are to have graduated from Hodgdon High School a minimum of 10 years prior to the nomination.
    • Nominees must be an outstanding citizen in the their community and free of violations of the law.
    For coaches, the criteria are simply that they must have been a varsity coach for five years or longer at Hodgdon High School.
    Smith explained the details were still being worked out, but he hoped to have the inaugural banquet/induction ceremony in December of 2013. An area at the high school would be used to display a plaque bearing the recipient’s name.
    The next meeting of the SAD 70 school board is Monday, Nov. 12 at 7 p.m.