NEW SWEDEN, Maine — The vote to close New Sweden school, an immensely polarizing issue, has resulted in the circulation of a petition to keep the facility open. Since New Sweden is part of a school union and not an RSU or MSAD, the school committee’s decision to close the building is binding unless a petition is filed.
Both Union 122 (Woodland, Westmanland and New Sweden) and the New Sweden Town Office have confirmed that they received the petition which, in New Sweden’s case, required 33 signatures, or a number equal to 10 percent of those who voted in the last gubernatorial election.
According to an official from the New Sweden Town Office, the Board of Selectmen will vote Tuesday, March 28 at 4 p.m. to either accept or deny the petition. If they accept, the school will then supply relevant information for articles to be written during a future referendum, with a date set by the town.
If Selectmen do not accept the petition, the New Sweden School Committee’s vote to close the school will be final and local students will be bussed to Woodland for the 2017-18 school year onward.
