Adams-Cheshire Regional to Decide Amended Agreement
The School Committee expects to vote on the amended regional agreement at its December meeting.
Massachusetts Association of Regional Schools consultant Jay Barry, a former local superintendent, went over the final draft with the committee on Monday.
"I think the subcommittee did a really good job with this and it gets to be a long tedious process, but the committee handled it well," Barry said. "I do think you have an agreement that builds a little bit more voice in for both towns."
The Regional Agreement Amendment Committee, or RAAC, was formed late last year to overhaul the antiquated agreement between the two towns. A subcommittee was formed with members from both Adams and Cheshire and MARS was hired to facilitate the amendment process.
Barry went over some of the more substantial changes -- one being renaming the district to the Hoosac Valley Regional School District.
Another major change was that certain school committee votes such as hiring a superintendent or closing a school would need an affirmative vote from both an Adams and Cheshire committee member. The closure of Cheshire School last year had been along town lines, causing a great deal of contention between the two towns and prompting the RAAC's creation.
"I think the subcommittee wants to make sure the two towns work together a little bit more and that both towns have a voice in decisions," he said.
Barry said a lot of work was just reorganizing the document, clarifying processes, and updating language. He said this was the case with the budget section of the agreement.
"It's not about how you get the budget approved it is more about getting the agreement up with the process you are using and education reform," he said.
He said the draft also covers the process of adding a new community to the district as well as subtracting one. He said it outlines moving from a three-member to a two-member district but also splitting the two-member district.
"If there is one town left it would result in the disestablishment of the district so it addresses that," Barry said. "I think that scenario is the worst-case scenario -- kind of an Armageddon and I hope it doesn't happen, but it does outline how it would work."
Barry concluded that the document also contains an optioned agreement review every five years and a mandated review every 10 years with the minimum creation of a subcommittee to investigate if a review is needed.
"It is a nice build in kind of measure to make sure you stay current," Barry said.
Barry said the state Department of Education currently has the document and only had a few minor suggestions.
If all goes to plan, the School Committee could vote on the document at its December meeting.
Ultimately, both town meetings must approve the amendment.
In other business, Superintendent John Vosburgh said he has started the budget process and has met with principals as well as the technology and athletic departments for preliminary budget discussions.
"We discussed their budgets and their wish lists with the understanding … that we can't just hire new teachers," he said. "This year we want to try to educate everyone on the budget process."
At the beginning of the meeting, Hoosac Valley Dean of Students Molly Meczywor asked the committee to review a concussion policy.
"We reached out to a couple of the different athletic directors in Berkshire County," she said. "We just wrote down our specific protocol and I think it would be important for the school committee to have this on record … the majority of this is taken right from the concussion law that we get from the CDC."
She added that the district received a $2,000 grant to run a unified track and field program at Hoosac Valley.
"We are really excited about this opportunity," she said. "The Special Olympics are really excited to pair with us and I think this is a great opportunity for a lot of our kids who may not have the opportunity to earn a letter and participate in athletics."
Unified sports allow students with intellectual disabilities and those without the opportunity to participate in school team sports.
Tags: ACRSD, HVRSD, regional agreement,
