What is feasibility? At the request of both Francestown and Dublin, the ConVal School District has tasked a committee of nine School Board representatives and nine Select Board members, one from each town, to decide if it is feasible (definition: reasonable, likely) and suitable (definition: able, qualified) for either or both towns to withdraw from the ConVal School District. 

At the same time, the Francestown School Committee has been researching feasibility and working toward a plan to educate the students in a new Francestown district. It is important for our friends in neighboring towns to understand why Francestown has decided to go down this path. 

Francestown residents voted overwhelmingly in favor of a feasibility study following the failed warrant article to change the Articles of Agreement that would have granted the school board the authority to close elementary schools.  After several similar attempts by warrant articles over the past decade, it was clear to the town that there is an imbalance of priorities between ConVal and Francestown.  This is understandable, as ConVal is managing the needs of the district, while Francestown manages the needs of the town.

So, what does Francestown want? Earlier this summer, the Francestown School Committee conducted a survey in town where the residents overwhelmingly stated they want the elementary school to remain in town and see withdrawal as the only way to ensure it stays.  This does not mean that Francestown devalues ConVal. In fact, it’s the opposite.  The current plan is to negotiate a tuition agreement to allow the Francestown middle and high school students to continue their education with ConVal. 

This not only allows Francestown to maintain the longstanding bond between the town and the greater ConVal community, but also brings a large portion of the Francestown school tax dollars back into the district, alleviating much of the financial burden that would be placed on the remaining towns. 

Compromise will be key in making any plan work moving forward.  It is clear the status quo will not be sustainable for either ConVal or Francestown.  The Francestown School Committee has put much thought and research into how to optimize the priorities for both.  Our committee sees this as a two-way street and has always viewed our relationship with ConVal this way. This is evident by our town’s unwavering support of the ConVal budget.

So, is it feasible and suitable?  Using ConVal’s numbers, as well as those of other single-town independent school districts, Francestown has shown it can run and can afford to operate the new school district and ConVal can continue to operate without the burden of FES.  Details need to be ironed out, but a fair tuition agreement would be the glue that holds this together. 

Francestown is looking for a net-neutral solution.  The committee is accounting for all expenses related to operating our own elementary school, including kindergarten through fifth gade. We are not looking for the ConVal district to subsidize any part of the operation of our own district. 

A recent article in this newspaper (“Dublin, Francestown withdrawals from ConVal projected to increase town costs,” Aug. 27) stated that other towns in the district are concerned that they might be called upon to pay for our services after withdrawal. This has never been the intention of our town.  We are working with members of the ConVal Feasibility Study Committee to ensure that the tuition numbers reflect the actual cost of the students. Francestown is planning to fully staff and fund all the expenses for our elementary school, including currently shared staff: nurse, specials (art, music, physical education, etc.)  teachers and counselors. 

We are also looking at the possibility of exiting SAU1. If Francestown is allowed to withdraw from the district, this would create a multi-district SAU, which would require additional expenses and a heavier financial burden for all towns using the services of the SAU.  To achieve our net-neutral goal, exiting the SAU would mean not increasing SAU costs for the remaining towns due to our withdrawal.

What’s next? Our committee was asked to speak to the ConVal committee on what Francestown wants.  We would now like to ask the same of the ConVal committee.  What is it that they want when looking at Francestown’s place in our district? The Francestown School Committee has shown that it is feasible and suitable for Francestown to withdraw from the district for both the town and ConVal while alleviating the burden of the small school from the district.

It is our hope that the ConVal Feasibility Study Committee agrees that it is feasible and allows the final decision to be put in the hands of the voters.  We believe the best path forward is for Francestown and ConVal to take the next step to work together to create a plan that builds on what has been put forward by the Francestown School Committee.

Laura Mafera is a member of the Francestown School Committee.