To the Editor:
Did you know that Monument Mountain Regional High School is attended by more than 200 students from 21 towns beyond the three towns (which has only 350 students) in the Berkshire Hills Regional School District?
Consider the burden of carrying a large out-of-district student population under the current school agreements and state statutes. As shown below, Great Barrington will be collecting 71 percent of its taxes for the school district.
Searching for answers…We are at a fortunate juncture where resources beyond our borders can help us weigh options. The State has allocated $150,000 to study alternatives through the Berkshire County Education Task Force (BCETF) and DMC, its consultants. Issues that should be reviewed include the four high schools in South County with small and declining district populations. These are becoming uneconomical to operate without constraining education, taxpayers and levy limits. Towns and school districts need to put this option on the table to include in DMC’s analyses of outcomes.
To support such planning, please Vote YES for WARRANT ARTICLE #28 at Great Barrington Town Meeting on Monday May 1. This non-binding article asks the Great Barrington Selectboard and the School Committee to explore critical issues. The goal is to provide a more equitable and sustainable foundation to best serve student needs as they face a challenging future.
A vote at Town Meeting is needed to show our concerns directly to the School Committee, which does not have a Town Meeting nor is it governed by the town.
Some suggest sending a signal by having our Town Meeting vote against the School District operational budget. However, we just get overridden, due to requirements of the District agreement and Department of Education statutes. Only votes on capital expenditures are decided at the polls.
What can we do? Your “YES” vote on Warrant Article 28 would encourage formation of an enlarged group to discuss district enhancement with other towns and school districts. The process would resemble last year’s Regional Agreement Amendment Committee, with representatives drawn from town boards, citizens-at-large and the School Committee.
The option to consolidate several high schools would create a strong foundation for a renovated high school with broader curricula and Vo-Tech options for all students, while providing equitable financial support. Such an organization could efficiently negotiate universally accessible special curricula and classes with BCC, MCLA, Simon’s Rock, or other institutions. In the same way, early college programs as well as associates degrees for vocational programs could be created. It would have the resources and leverage to improve transportation and technology infrastructure, while safeguarding teacher positions that are vulnerable to annual budget tightening.
Another option to evaluate is the call for home rule and navigating solutions individually. While “Shared Services” agreements have helped, they are not very scalable. They require enormous amounts of time, money and administrative costs. Should superintendents’ time be diverted to negotiating cross-district agreements for small schools or concentrating on improving student education opportunities?
Discussions on district reform with other towns would offer a “once in a lifetime opportunity” to enable our old high school system — established 52 years ago — to better address the urgent education, enrollment and fiscal challenges facing our communities.
If you agree that we need to fully engage in these decisions, please VOTE YES for WARRANT ARTICLE 28 at Great Barrington Town Meeting on Monday May 1.
Sharon Gregory
Great Barrington
The writer is a sponsor of Warrant Article 28 for the Great Barrington Annual Town Meeting.
