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MARS Board Meeting Minutes
March 14, 2006
Present: Joe Kurland, Bob McIntyre, Stephen Hemmen, Mindy
Kempner, Gene Carlo, Maureen Marshall, Michael Fitzpatrick, Dee Dee Niswonger
House 2 is seen as fair but not dealing with adequacy, and the Foundation Budget
must be increased to meet the actual costs supported by the towns for their
school districts to meet adequacy.
The so-called Acton proposal is seen as having little chance of success. This
proposal does not support the needs of education.
On April 6, at Assabet, at 9 am, MASS will present material about House 2 and
the Foundation Budget which is essential material for us all. The MARS meeting
was a run through of that upcoming event, with sound figures on what the state
said it pays and what it actually pays for education, what is really being
spent, and how we might get fairer support from the state. Your attendance is
strongly encouraged.
Out of that meeting April 6 meeting we will see how to work to get some of SPED
transportation included in the Circuit Breaker.
At this time you are urged to use the House 2 numbers, with the caveat that if
different numbers come out in the House budget, you will have to change the
numbers. This makes budgeting hard, but we are in transition here with no clear
path yet. Also it is suggested that we use this year’s transportation numbers.
Although 5 million has been added to the budget, the increased costs are
expected to absorb the increased dollars. We will work to get more into that
account but our focus has to be on increasing the Foundation Budget. There is
more money available this year, and we must get a phased in motion toward fully
funding the Foundation Budget based on real, current costs. At this time
Massachusetts is 44th in the nation for states’ contribution to education. We
are 4 or 5 in terms of income.
Please come to the April 6 meeting at Assabet Valley, at 9 am. For directions to
Assabet go to the MARS website :
www.massassociationregionalschools.org
Respectfully submitted by Dee Dee Niswonger
For More Information Contact:
Massachusetts Association of Regional Schools
P.O. Box 334, Williamsburg, MA 01096-0334
Tel: 413-268-3607
E-mail:
niswonger@comcast.net
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Massachusetts Association of
Regional Schools