The challenges facing the Contoocook Valley School District are shared by all of the towns which are members of this consolidated school district.
Children are not getting the education they deserve and we owe them. Test scores are significantly below the goals set by ConVal. Student proficiency for all ConVal students in English language arts is at 51% and math is at 40%. ConVal’s goal is for students to reach 75% proficiency. This situation has existed for many years. There is no plan to improve these results.
ConVal has been trying to close the small schools in their system for decades. This includes the best-performing primary school in the district and the school located in the town which pays dramatically more per student than any other.
The smallest schools are Bennington (62 students), Dublin (55), Francestown (43) and Temple (37). Logically, Hancock (76) would be next, followed by Greenfield (88). Unlikely candidates are Antrim (133), and Peterborough (243).
The School Board responded to its financial challenges by proposing the issuance of $44 million in new bonds. This was done without any plan to address our already-burdensome costs. When faced with significant opposition to this plan, the board first dropped the improvements to the auditorium at the high school and later the Career and Technology Center. What kind of management is this disconnected from its customer base?
The towns of Dublin and Francestown have indicated their unhappiness with the current situation by proposing to withdraw from the ConVal district. The residents of Temple have proposed a plan to deal with ballooning costs. They were not even granted a hearing by the School Board. Three out of nine towns have indicated their displeasure with the current situation. Any other entity would attempt to address these concerns.
Part of the withdrawal process required a presentation to the NH State Board of Education. The board unanimously approved Dublin’s and Francestown’s request to allow a vote to withdraw. They unanimously rejected the School Board’s arguments that it was neither “feasible or suitable” for Dublin and Francestown to leave. The chair of the State Board remarked that “our report was among the best withdrawal reports they had ever seen.”
Most towns in ConVal have limited representation. Is your town properly represented on the ConVal School Board? Current representation is Peterborough four, Antrim two, Dublin, Sharon, Greenfield, Hancock, Bennington, Temple and Francestown one each.
Despite all of this, ConVal continues to deny its new reality. Public schools now have competition. Homeschooling is the fastest-growing form of education in America. Education Freedom Accounts are having an increasing impact on attendance. Parents are also choosing private, religious and charter schools.
In Dublin, we estimate that 45% of our school-age children are educated outside of the public school system. When the ConVal administration was asked if they know where these missing children, are they responded no.
Dublin and Francestown believe in public education. Our towns are acting to protect and strengthen public education. Our goal is to create an educational system which entices parents to give public schools another chance. This all starts with strong and welcoming local public schools.
People may have been told that New Hampshire does not spend enough on education. The truth is that New Hampshire spends well above the national average. Our state spends $21,000 per student, and ConVal spends more than that. This spending continues to rise as enrollment declines.
This is not because teachers’ pay has increased by extraordinary rates. The proposed budget for ConVal is $59 million, representing an increase of $1.8 million or 3.13%. This includes the elimination of 11 teaching positions. No administrative positions have been eliminated.
There has been a push for affordable housing in many of the towns in our region. How can you have affordable housing when school taxes continue to rise in excess of inflation?
Enrollment at ConVal will continue to decline. Costs will continue to increase. Where is the plan for the future of our children? Is it time to ask if another educational structure better fits your town?
A multi-district school administrative unit, SAU, would solve many of the challenges which face ConVal. This structure would allow towns to run their own primary schools, if they choose to do so. Many SAUs are structured this way. For example, Chesterfield, Harrisville, Keene, Marlborough, Marlow, Nelson and Westmoreland all belong to SAU29.
Each town has a school board to run its own local school. Some utilize Keene for Middle School. All use Keene for high school. There is an SAU29 School Board made up of the members from each of the seven school districts. The SAU board oversees the governance of the SAU, including staff, budget and policies.
Creation of a multi-district SAU for ConVal would return control of local education to the towns. It would allow ConVal to concentrate on improving the education received in the upper grades.
Please allow Dublin and Francestown to pick what we feel is best for our children. Vote yes for Articles 7 and 8 on March 11.
Jay Schechter was the chairman of the former Dublin Education Advisory Committee. The opinions presented are based on his experience on that committee, and do not reflect the views of the Francestown School Committee.