The Jaffrey-Rindge School Board on Monday appointed Dan Aho to fill a vacant seat, choosing the longtime business owner and former selectman over former teacher Angela Johnson in a split vote.
The seat was recently vacated by Chris Ratcliffe, who resigned effective April 8 after four years on the school board.
Aho, who lives in Rindge, pointed to 43 years of business ownership and prior public service in Rindge, including eight years on the budget advisory committee, three years as a selectman and three years on the school board, as the foundation for his candidacy. During his earlier school board tenure, he said, the board held the budget steady for three consecutive years without cutting services.
“My background is more budgeting and putting budgets together … without actually trying to reduce anything, trying to figure out how to get the best cost savings and make it work in that way,” he said.
Aho does not have children in the district and his own children, he said, did not attend school in Jaffrey-Rindge.
Johnson ran earlier this year for a separate board seat, losing to Jared Reini at candidates’ night in January. Asked why she was seeking the appointment now, she said she wanted to help guide the district and strengthen the community.
The board also weighed decisions that could reshape how the district manages community access to school buildings, generates revenue from non-resident students, and raises money for projects outside the operating budget.
Chair Lisa Wiley said she intended to bring information to the group, but no action would be taken.
Limiting facility use
The first proposal would restrict community group use of indoor facilities to weekdays before 6 p.m., with exceptions. Administrators have raised repeated concerns about security and care of the buildings, but the district lacks any system to monitor incidents or enforce the cost provisions already on the books. Each elementary school is staffed by three custodians serving 300 to 400 students and staff. Before moving forward, the board wants data on how many groups currently use the buildings after 6 p.m., who would be displaced, and what alternatives exist.
Reini had concerns about whether some of the proposed policies would harm certain groups rather than help overall.
Board member Alicia Vitello also expressed concern over some of the wording, including “limiting use.”
“We don’t have many other community buildings in many of our communities,” she said.
Board member Christina Pressman echoed those concerns, noting that she wanted to look at ways to keep facilities open without opening the district up to damage and other concerns.
Wiley said, as a community, the district needed to have some difficult conversations. She said the board would come back with recommendations.
Fees to participate
A second proposal would charge fees to non-Jaffrey-Rindge students who participate in district activities and athletics using Education Freedom Account funds. State law and district policy already permit the practice.
According to the state’s 2025 EFA fact sheet, Rindge ranks eighth statewide with 172 EFA students, about 28.67% of its public school enrollment. That’s the highest ratio among the state’s top 20 EFA towns.
Fundraising platforms
The third proposal directs the board to explore online fundraising platforms that could be linked from the district website to solicit community support for projects outside the operating budget. Open questions include who would manage the platform and accounts, what policy revisions would be required, and how the district would address data security and liability for breaches.
In other business, Superintendent Reuben Duncan provided updates on several ongoing improvement projects.
Construction on the Conant Middle High School track is set to begin May 18. Duncan said the track will not be usable for several months.
Duncan also said a contract with Monadnock Community Builders for work to be done at Rindge Memorial School and Jaffrey Grade School was being finalized, with work likely to commence this summer.
“We have looked at several different options,” he said, regarding options for new windows at RMS. ” … All of them were energy efficient, but what was going to be better, what was going to be safer.”
Duncan said some safety concerns have come up for flooring at JGS. Those concerns will also be addressed this summer.
He said there was other potential work to be done, including interior locks at JGS and the RMS entrance, as well as security cameras at all locations.
