MEDWAY – In early January, area school officials are expected to decide on funding for a professional study of area school consolidation.

Members of a new committee representing the four area school boards agreed last week that they will go back to their boards to better define the scope of information that should be included in the study.

The new committee was formed earlier this year at the urging of area town officials, who expressed concern about how future declining enrollments and diminishing school funding would continue to adversely affect students’ education.

School officials representing three of the four towns have yet to approve funding to hire a consultant to prepare the study, which is estimated to cost $5,000. Millinocket will pay 60 percent of the study and School Union 113 (East Millinocket, Medway and Woodville) will pay 40 percent of the cost.

The Millinocket School Board has approved $3,000 for the study. The Woodville School Board will consider $100 for the study during its meeting on Dec. 18. Medway voters will be asked to consider $800 for the study during a special town meeting on Jan. 7.

East Millinocket school officials, who in a tie vote last week turned down a proposal to spend $1,100 for the study, are expected to reconsider the proposal during their Jan. 8 meeting.

Officials who opposed funding said they did so because the proposed study seemed to focus only on combining area schools. Committee member Bill Hamlin said the study should include information about sharing programs to improve education for students.

Sandra McArthur, superintendent of the school union, said she wasn’t sure the boards were clear on exactly what they wanted from the consolidation study. “We need to define what it is that we want this study to do,” she said.

Some committee members said the group should take its time and do the study right. “This sounds like it will be done in three months and it will be to the voters in May and we will be consolidated in a year from September,” said Hamlin. “We should take our time, do it right and not just rush right through something.” Shellie Cote of Woodville and committee member Steve Federico agreed.

Jayne Bartley of Millinocket said a study should include information about how declining enrollments and financial problems would affect each of the school systems during the next five years. “Are we going to be able to offer our students good programs?” asked Bartley.

McArthur said perhaps the group had moved too fast and was feeling forced. “I don’t think this group has had a chance to form a group … [to decide] what the charge is or where we are going or what we are doing,” said McArthur.

Federico said the study needed to include more information than the standard “boilerplate” school structures such as school districts or community school districts. He said Medway school officials now have some financial control, but that would be lost in a school district. He said financial control was as important as providing students with a good education.

Millinocket Superintendent Brent Colbry said officials are not tied to the standard types of school structures.

Some board members attending the committee meeting urged the group to move forward with a study, which could provide residents with important information to make any future decisions about consolidating area schools.

Dave Rush, chairman of the East Millinocket board, told members of the committee it was costing East Millinocket taxpayers about $8,500 per student for education. His figure was based on dividing the number of students by the current total budget. “I don’t think that is sustainable,” he said.

Federico said the reason East Millinocket and Medway were successful in consolidating their school grades a few years ago was that officials took the time, looked beyond standard types of school structures and had time to educate the public about the change. “Right now, you haven’t got the committees [the school boards] bought in. Until the committees themselves are convinced this is the right thing to, do it’s going to be difficult to get public support,” he said.

“Let’s slow down, raise the money, get the questions and concerns of each board and then talk with a consultant,” said Federico. “Until we have done that and organized it well, we are going to have a boilerplate consolidation and it will fail.”