A warrant article on the ConVal School District ballot aims to change how the school district allocates expenses to each town.
Currently, the funding formula is based 50 percent on each town’s average daily membership of students and 50 percent on each town’s equalized property valuations.
Should the article pass by a 2/3 majority, the new formula would be 60 percent property valuations and 40 percent student count.
School Board chair Myron Steere said Wednesday that the funding formula change would help to shift some of the district’s operating budget costs to towns with smaller elementary schools.
“We felt [this proposed change] would help to equalize the cost within the district,” Steere said. “… the idea is to put a little more cost into those communities with smaller schools.”
If passed, Dublin, Hancock, Francestown, Sharon, and Temple would all be expected to pay a larger portion of the district’s expenses, while Antrim, Bennington, Greenfield, and Peterborough would all be expected to pay a smaller percent, according to information provided by the district.
Dublin, Francestown, Hancock, and Temple all have elementary schools with less than 55 students, based on November 2018 enrollment figures.
“We had talked about 100-percent equity-based, but that would be harder to swallow,” Steere said.
Steere said the funding formula warrant article is being proposed to voters as an alternative to the district proposing a consolidation model.
The funding formula warrant article was placed on the ballot during the school board’s Jan. 8 meeting, as an alternative to warrant articles asking to reduce the number of schools in the district from 11 to 5 and to create a surcharge for towns with elementary schools that have less than 65 students.
The district was founded in 1968 on a funding formula of 75 percent average daily membership and 25 percent equalized property values, ConVal Superintendent Kimberly Saunders said Wednesday.
It remained that way until 1996, when the formula was changed to the 50-50 blend that it is today.
Historically, there have been at least a half dozen attempts to make equalized property values a larger portion of the formula, but none have passed.
ConVal’s deliberative session is scheduled for Wednesday at 6 p.m. at ConVal High School.
Nicholas Handy can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 235 or nhandy@ledgertranscript.com.