Superintendents, legislators talk Aroostook County education concerns include school funding

PRESQUE ISLE – School superintendents from more than a dozen Aroostook County districts spent part of Wednesday morning talking about issues of major concern with four members of the region’s legislative delegation.

Topics ranging from school funding and the governor’s laptop computer program to teacher certification and home schooling were discussed for about two hours at the Campus Center at the University of Maine at Presque Isle.

Participating in the panel discussion with the superintendents were state Reps. Irvin Belanger, R-Caribou; Marc Michaud, D-Fort Kent; and Mabel Desmond, D-Mapleton; and state Sen. Richard Kneeland, R-Easton.

With the state facing a $248 million budget shortfall next year, school officials were anxious to know what they can expect, particularly the chance that the state’s school funding formula might be changed.

Most pointed out that the inclusion of median income as a factor in the formula had hurt their districts.

Desmond noted that the state was divided between towns where median income helped school funding and those that it hurt.

“If one community gains $3 million, another loses $3 million,” she said. “You can’t imagine the pressure you get from the rest of the state because they feel they’re losing money.”

Michaud agreed, noting that in the end “it comes down to who’s going to have the power to manipulate the formula so that they’ll get the greatest benefit from it.”

Belanger added that no matter what the funding level is and regardless of whether the state puts certain caps on what it will provide, that doesn’t prevent wealthier communities in southern Maine from willingly increasing local spending to keep local programs.

“When they lose a program, it’s usually a program we never had,” said one frustrated superintendent.

Concerning laptop computers for the state’s seventh- and eighth-grade pupils, the legislators agreed that considering the state’s budget situation, the $30 million base funding for that program could be a target.

“There’s a shortage of money,” said Kneeland. “We might have to get funding where we can.”

Belanger agreed. “It’s on the table and I would be very surprised if part of [the laptop funding] doesn’t go to funding shortfall,” he said.

The superintendents also expressed frustration at trying to meet state mandates to implement the Learning Results standards and develop local assessments as well as hire certified people to fill library-media and gifted and talented positions – all while trying to meet requirements for safety plans, water testing and codes of ethics.

“There’s a saturation point,” said Superintendent David Wiggin of SAD 29 in Houlton.

He said issues of staff training, time for that training and pay for staff members to be trained also had to be calculated into the picture.

“In five [workshop] days a year, how do we do that?” Wiggin asked. “We’re going to have to have a lot more expertise and it costs money to do that.”

Superintendents also wondered how the state expected them to fill new positions required to meet state mandates.

“We have a problem where we’re struggling to find people to put into these positions and then keep them there … at a time when we’re trying to find a good person just to put in a [regular] classroom,” said Superintendent Thomas Scott of Madawaska.

Superintendent Frank Keenan of Easton added that a few years ago it was possible to get 15 to 20 candidates for a job opening. Now he sometimes gets only one or two.

“It’s scary,” he said, adding that finding qualified people who meet state standards is often “a crapshoot” at the high school level.

While the legislators sympathized with the school administrators, they also offered some advice.

“Be more proactive to providing solutions to the Legislature. Don’t just ask questions,” said Belanger.

“We try our best,” said Desmond. “Some of us have to work harder at it because we’re from northern Maine.

“Give me some ammunition to take back [to Augusta] for discussion,” added Desmond.