Members of the Mountain Views Supervisory Union have formed a working group to push their plans for a new Woodstock Union Middle and Highschool. It comes after the large education reform law was passed at the end of the last legislative session. The law will change school districts, and those new districts will be funded directly by the state.However, members of Mountain views said they need to work with the state to get more clarity of the law, they said language such as a “Hub” school are not defined clearly. The new school, which will be over $100 million, also needs to eventually go to bond. “There is so much gray area in there regarding bonding and how the process is involved,” Superintendent Sherry Sousa said. “What we need to hear now from the agency of education is what they will accept based on all the time and financial investments of our communities on moving forward.”Chair of the MVSD Board of Directors Keri Bristow said the district will seek a bond if certain conditions are met.“We feel that it’s better for us to try to control our destiny,” she said. The plans for a new school were previously approved by the state. Vermont’s Agency of Education Secretary Zoie Saunders said right now districts have a right to pursue their projects. “It’s still within their local authority to pursue different projects at this time,” she said. “Then moving forward, there will be other inputs through the redistricting task force and also recommendations around transportation that that might inform different decisions.”Regardless of plan or process, Members of MVSU said a new middle/high school is needed, no matter what. Portions of it were built in the 1950s. Visible water damage can be seen, and a temporary heating system is used for the school. “Repairing is not the best thing; not do its more about replacing,” Director of Buildings and Grounds Joe Rigoli said. Bristow said the state would like to have roughly 4,000 – 8,000 students per district when they are mapped, but they do not know the recommendations for school size. The new Bellows Free Academy is being built in Fairfax and is expected to be completed at around the start of the upcoming school year. Superintendent of the Franklin West Supervisory Union John Tague said he expects the new school to be sufficient, no matter how the state decides to redistrict”Whatever the new board that takes over responsibility for that school will be, we’ll have a great facility to take care of the needs for kids,” he said. The MVSU working group will meet with members of the state next Wednesday to discuss their plans. Lawmakers will be voting on the new districts during the next session.
Members of the Mountain Views Supervisory Union have formed a working group to push their plans for a new Woodstock Union Middle and Highschool.
It comes after the large education reform law was passed at the end of the last legislative session. The law will change school districts, and those new districts will be funded directly by the state.
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However, members of Mountain views said they need to work with the state to get more clarity of the law, they said language such as a “Hub” school are not defined clearly.
The new school, which will be over $100 million, also needs to eventually go to bond. “There is so much gray area in there regarding bonding and how the process is involved,” Superintendent Sherry Sousa said. “What we need to hear now from the agency of education is what they will accept based on all the time and financial investments of our communities on moving forward.”
Chair of the MVSD Board of Directors Keri Bristow said the district will seek a bond if certain conditions are met.
“We feel that it’s better for us to try to control our destiny,” she said.
The plans for a new school were previously approved by the state. Vermont’s Agency of Education Secretary Zoie Saunders said right now districts have a right to pursue their projects.
“It’s still within their local authority to pursue different projects at this time,” she said. “Then moving forward, there will be other inputs through the redistricting task force and also recommendations around transportation that that might inform different decisions.”
Regardless of plan or process, Members of MVSU said a new middle/high school is needed, no matter what. Portions of it were built in the 1950s. Visible water damage can be seen, and a temporary heating system is used for the school.
“Repairing is not the best thing; not do its more about replacing,” Director of Buildings and Grounds Joe Rigoli said.
Bristow said the state would like to have roughly 4,000 – 8,000 students per district when they are mapped, but they do not know the recommendations for school size.
The new Bellows Free Academy is being built in Fairfax and is expected to be completed at around the start of the upcoming school year.
Superintendent of the Franklin West Supervisory Union John Tague said he expects the new school to be sufficient, no matter how the state decides to redistrict
“Whatever the new board that takes over responsibility for that school will be, we’ll have a great facility to take care of the needs for kids,” he said.
The MVSU working group will meet with members of the state next Wednesday to discuss their plans. Lawmakers will be voting on the new districts during the next session.
