Chittenden Central Supervisory Union and Essex Town School District are heading toward a merger.
On Aug. 18, the State Board of Education approved a proposal put forth by a study panel made up of representatives from Essex Town, Essex Village and Westford. Just weeks before, the 20-member group tasked with reporting their findings to the state had voted as one in favor of the unification.
“What is remarkable to me is that 20 members of a committee got around the table and unanimously agreed to propose to our communities that we create a unified school district – when it is pretty rare that 20 people agree on anything,” said Brendan Kinney, chairman of the merger study committee.
The group began meeting in March with facilitator Brian O’Regan. They wrestled with the question of whether the communities would be better off in a unified district while viewing hundreds of presentations, reviewing materials and debating, according to Kinney.
In November, voters will have the final say on a merger. If they vote in favor, these communities will be the first to move forward under the accelerated merger plan in Act 46. While the study began under Act 156 it finished after Act 46 passed which means that the towns will qualify for five years of tax breaks because they will consolidate into a unit of more than 900 students.
“It is not as if we are under any mandate to merge, but when we started looking at the question and investigated the ins-and-outs of what unification would look like it, made a lot of sense. In the end we will be better off together,” Kinney said.
A merger was discussed back in 2007 but it seemed to fizzle out. Kinney, who was on the school board in Essex Town until last spring, reckons there are a few reasons why that may have happened: how schools are governed and paid for has become a statewide concern; the financial incentives were not there; and he credits the Hearts and Soul Committee’s work to pull the Essex communities together.
“I think that changed a lot of hearts and minds about working separately or working together. There was some old historical baggage about being a distinct and separate community and people just started to realize the benefits of sharing resources, sharing expertise and working together,” he said of Hearts and Soul.
The merger study group found that within the first few years after forming a new district they would realize about a million dollars in savings.
“There are actually more savings and efficiencies to be had,” Kinney said.
But what really moved him and the board was the opportunity for teachers to work together on a shared Pre-K-12 curriculum and share experiences and expertise all to better serve the students.
While the report submitted to the state board refers to the proposed merger as that of Essex Town, Essex Junction and Westford school districts, the unification would occur between Chittenden Central Supervisory Union and Essex Town School District. The Chittenden supervisory union serves Pre-K through 12th grade students at Essex High School and Technical Center, Essex Junction Schools and the Westford School district. Essex Town stands alone as a Pre-K-grade 8 district, and in Westford the high school students have choice.
There has been some concern that Westford residents may vote against the merger because they fear they would lose choice, but Kinney said that the report includes protections for choice.
“We heard loud and clear from Westford that choice was an issue in their community,” Kinney said. The panel decided to grandfather choice for students until 2020. “We felt very strongly about that.”
Next week, the committee will begin holding public forums to relay their findings and advocate for the unification with the public. Kinney is interested in hearing from those who attend. He said that when most people hear the basic plan they think it makes sense to unify and ask why it hadn’t been done before.
“I feel like the unanimous vote makes a compelling case for unification. I think the majority of folks will tend to agree.”
At the same time that residents vote on the merger issue in November, they will also be electing a new 10-member school board that will deal with the rollout of the unification if it is approved. Kinney is mulling a run but he has until October to make a decision.
“I would love to see this process through. As the chair of the study committee, I would love to be at the table during the transition to make sure the things we discussed and the opportunities we think are there are followed through on.”
