To the editor:
The Legislature is moving forward with its consideration of Governor Baldacci’s education consolidation proposal. I am pleased with the Governor’s acknowledgement of the high cost of education in Maine, but I am very concerned with the details on his plan.
There are many consequences that Mainers would face if the Governor’s plan is approved. The current 290 school districts would be dissolved and replaced with 26 regional centers, and all school boards would be eliminated in favor of 26 regional advisory committees. These advisory committees would decide the curriculum, school budgets, construction projects, etc. for the entire region which, in some instances, encompasses more students than the number of citizens in a State Senate district, and can cover over one hundred miles of distance from end to end.
I agree that there can be savings through reasonable and effective consolidation efforts. By sharing services like transportation, payroll, and food service, for example, towns can achieve real savings, administer quality services, and focus more of their efforts on the delivery of information to students. Approving the Governor’s proposal and forcing illogical unions between towns, however, would create 26 chaotic regions struggling to deliver a quality education to their students and comply with state mandated changes to their existing systems.
We must change the system of education in Maine, but we must also be careful to do it in such a way that makes sense for our children and our local communities.
Roger Sherman
State Senator
District 34
