Madawaska residents on May 26 approved a $10.1 million district school budget, which rose 1.2% over the previous year.
The budget now advances to a referendum vote on June 9.
In order to maintain a relatively flat budget, Madawaska School Department officials reduced the equivalent of 4.3 full-time staff members, Superintendent Ben Sirois said. This was mostly due to retirements.
The $10.1 million includes a $120,900 increase over the current year. The most significant increases were an additional $130,715 in facilities maintenance and an additional $99,505 in regular instruction. The totals for both departments, respectively, are $1.8 million and $3.2 million.
The new budget also contains a respective $74,875 and $53,155 reduction in pupil transportation and special education. Both budgets are $619,925 and $1.7 million.
In the meeting packet, Sirois noted the district’s future plans of collaborating with MSAD 33. Officials in both districts filed a joint notice of intent to consider reorganizing and consolidating in light of a newly approved school project for MSAD 33. Officials in both districts determined that a consolidated PreK-12 facility is the best path forward, he wrote.
A meeting was held earlier this month in Madawaska in which officials in both districts described the unique opportunity that the project represents. MSAD 33 was only one of two schools in the state approved for a new facility, and it may be one of the last to receive full state funding for basic construction.
The referendum vote is set for June 9 at the Knights of Columbus Hall on 172 Fox Street. It will be held from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
