Mount Greylock Shooting for 'Eligibility' from MSBA

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
Print Story | Email Story

The Mount Greylock Regional School District will be presenting its Statement of Interest to the School Building Authority this fall. Above, the sprung seats in the school auditorium are just one of the issues at the 50-year-old school
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The state School Building Authority will determine in the coming months whether to pass the plan for a new Mount Greylock Regional High School on to the next phase.

The school district's Statement of Interest is expected to be presented to the authority's board of directors on either Oct. 3 or Nov. 14. The agendas for those meetings are not yet available.

Representatives from the SBA toured the middle and high school this past July and quizzed the administration and School Building Subcommittee on the building's condition and their plans.

"We felt we did a well-prepared presentation," Ellis told the School Committee on Tuesday night as part of an update on district news over the summer. "They wanted to know our political and financial support, which we shared with them.

"We feel that even though we're in challenging economic times that people recognize that Mount Greylock needs replacement."

The school, estimated at $40 million to $50 million based on similar projects, is one of a number of capital projects Williamstown is discussing. The town's Finance Committee was meeting Thursday night with representatives from other boards to prioritize the list.

If approved, the school would move into a new step created by the MSBA, the "eligibility phase," which is designed to help the state agency manage funding resources and for the school districts to gauge local support.

Ellis said her perception was that the 270-day eligibility phase was to ensure school districts were able and prepared before moving on to a feasibility study.

According to the MSBA's website, school districts are required to establish and submit for acceptance a school building committee; complete certification denoting they understand the grant program rules and a design enrollment for the project; summarize the district's funding capacities and maintenance practices; confirm they have community support and funding; and execute a standard feasibility study agreement.

"The eligibility phase is for the community buy-in," said committee member David Langston.

Ellis said that was correct, but warned there was no guarantee that the SBA would continue to work with the school past the eligibility phase.

"If we don't have our ducks in a row, if we have any problems they'll say, 'we'll get back to you.'"

The school district is also expecting to apply for a regionalization grant, which could mean more points to the school project.

"The regionalization effort can inform the MSBA reimbursement to the town," said Ellis. "Actually, I think the highest percentage points are given to towns that move in that direction."

The Mount Greylock district is comprised of middle and high school students from Lanesborough and Williamstown but has an agreements with School Union 71 (Williamstown and Lanesborough elementary schools). Ellis is superintendent of all three schools as the Williamstown-Lanesborough Public Schools.

"They will give us the nod yes, we can move into the eligibility phase or no, come back with your SOI next year," said Ellis.

Still, she pointed out next year is January, which isn't so far away: "Keep a short view, we're not giving up on this."


Tags: MGRHS,   MSBA,   school project,   

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Berkshire Wind Power Cooperative Corporation Scholarships

LUDLOW, Mass. — For the third year, Berkshire Wind Power Cooperative Corporation (BWPCC) will award scholarships to students from Lanesborough and Hancock. 
 
The scholarship is open to seniors at Mount Greylock Regional High School and Charles H. McCann Technical School. BWPCC will select two students from the class of 2024 to receive $1,000 scholarships.
 
The scholarships will be awarded to qualifying seniors who are planning to attend either a two- or four-year college or trade school program. Seniors must be from either Hancock or Lanesborough to be considered for the scholarship. Special consideration will be given to students with financial need, but all students are encouraged to apply.
 
The BWPCC owns and operates the Berkshire Wind Power Project, a 12 turbine, 19.6-megawatt wind farm located on Brodie Mountain in Hancock and Lanesborough. The non-profit BWPCC consists of 16 municipal utilities located in Ashburnham, Boylston, Chicopee, Groton, Holden, Hull, Ipswich, Marblehead, Paxton, Peabody, Russell, Shrewsbury, Sterling, Templeton, Wakefield, and West Boylston, and their joint action agency, the Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company (MMWEC). 
 
To be considered, students must submit all required documents including a letter of recommendation from their school counselor and a letter detailing their educational and professional goals. Application and submission details will be shared with students via their school counselors. The deadline to apply is Friday, April 19.
 
 MMWEC is a not-for-profit, public corporation and political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts created by an Act of the General Court in 1975 and authorized to issue tax-exempt debt to finance a wide range of energy facilities.  MMWEC provides a variety of power supply, financial, risk management and other services to the state's consumer-owned, municipal utilities. 
View Full Story

More Lanesborough Stories