HODGDON, Maine — It’s official. By a split vote of the SAD 70 board of directors, seventh- and eighth-graders will be moving to the high school at the start of the next school year.
At a Feb. 8, 2016 meeting, the board voted 5-4 to move forward with the relocation. The district has been debating the concept of moving the two grade levels for about a year.
“There was a good discussion by the board on this subject,” SAD 70 Superintendent Scott Richardson said. “I have already heard from one of the board members who opposed it, and they are willing to move on for the betterment of the district.”
Board members Joel Oliver, Mark Ganzel, Cynthia Hutchinson, Ronald Silliboy and David Harris supported the motion, while Tom Horton, Maureen Friel, Angela Howland and Gordon Ledger opposed.
As of January enrollment figures, there are 38 seventh-graders and 37 eighth-graders. Total enrollment at Mill Pond School is 333. There are 142 students at Hodgdon High School.
Traditionally, Mill Pond Elementary School has served pre-K to grade eight students. Currently, some teachers from the high school must go over to Mill Pond School to provide instruction to the seventh- and eighth-graders.
A subcommittee comprised of parents, teachers and administrators spent several months investigating the move concept. The committee did not give an opinion on where it felt the students should be located, and instead listed the pros and cons of the move.
At a public hearing on the move in Jan.20, most of those in attendance expressed concerns and opposition to moving the seventh- and eighth-graders for a variety of reasons. Some asked how the students would be separated from the high-schoolers, while others questioned how much money would be needed to renovate the high school.
Richardson said the next step is to come up with a schedule for when the renovations to the high school will be done during summer break to accommodate the new students.
The plan is to house the seventh- and eighth-graders on the first floor of Hodgdon High School. One boy’s and one girl’s restroom will be created so the students did not have to use the same facilities as high schoolers.
Richardson said the next step is to start working on how lunch schedules will be handled. The plan is to keep the seventh- and eighth-graders separated from the high schoolers as much as possible, he added.
“We will plan all the little details and specifics,” he said. “We will be rolling out all that information for parents as soon as we have it. I encourage parents or students who have questions to ask their principals or myself.”
Richardson said it should only cost the district about $30,000 to renovate the classroom space to create dedicated seventh- and eighth-grade classrooms. However, the district thinks it can save $100,000 in next year’s budget by making the switch. That savings comes from the elimination of the Mill Pond Elementary assistant principal position and a special education teacher.
