Union 96 looking at 2 possible plans

Like nearly every other Maine school district, Union 96 in Hancock County has until Dec. 1 to submit consolidation plans to the state Department of Education.

Regional Planning Committee (RPC) members representing the school boards of Union 96 seem intent on using every last minute they have.

At a meeting this week, the RPC postponed making a recommendation to the DOE for another month.

Union 96, which represents five communities in Hancock County and Steuben in Washington County, has outlined two possibilities.

The first is to move west and align with the Ellsworth School Department. The second is to head east and combine with SAD 37, which is made up of several towns in western Washington County. “A number of RPC members from our communities all said we need to seriously consider both options, and at this point we don’t have enough information to make a decision,” Union 96 Superintendent William Webster said Thursday.

The RPC will revisit those options at a meeting on Nov. 27.

In the meantime, Webster said members will meet again with representatives from Ellsworth and SAD 37.

“Both sides have been good to work with in part because many of them are in the same position,” he said.

Ellsworth, for instance, is working with Union 92, which includes eight small Hancock County communities surrounding Ellsworth. SAD 37 is considering merging with the Machias School Department.

One wrinkle in the decision process is the town of Steuben, which has said it will try to withdraw from Union 96 if the district moves west to Ellsworth. However, potential legislation that would have allowed that to happen has been shelved, according to Webster.

“We may end up moving east, so it could be a moot point,” he said, referring to Steuben.

Either way, RPC members agree that there hasn’t been enough time to seriously consider a decision that will no doubt have lasting effects.

“I think we’ll have a little more information in a month, but we think it’s still an inadequate amount,” Webster said.

All school districts must submit their plans to the state by Dec. 1.

Webster said he recently inquired about what the consequences would be if a decision is not made, but he has not heard back from the Department of Education.