New York State Releases Money for the Merger Study

Welcome back to a new school year. This year promises to be one of exploration and, hopefully, solutions to some of the issues that we have been contending with for the last few years. We hope to hear the thinking of our constituent groups and plan to weave your thoughts into our plans for our future.

Last Friday, the Governor’s Office called with news that the funding for the Consolidation Study will be released in the near future. We were asked to wait to make it public once the press release went out. After a short delay, due to Irene, we are now making this news public.

Over the next few weeks, the combined representatives from the Morrisville-Eaton School District and the Hamilton School District will come together to interview the consultant groups that submitted RFP’s for the study. Once we have selected a group, we will ask for names of individuals that would like to be part of the Consolidation Study Committee. Please understand that this committee is limited in size. We will determine the criteria for selection when the time comes and publicize the methodology at that time.

This evening, August 31st, our first conversation will begin with the public at our Community Leaders’ meeting at 5:30 in the HS Library. Please feel free to join us if you have an interest. The Consolidation Study will also be a discussion item at two upcoming meetings. The first, our Board of Education Work Session, is a new type of meeting designed to offer our community additional opportunities for input. This will be held the morning of Friday September 9th at 7:30, to accommodate work schedules. This will also be held in the HS Library. Child care will be available, in the cafeteria, for children that attend HCS.

The second meeting is our September BOE meeting on Tuesday September 20th in the Elementary Library. Please note that our BOE Meetings will begin at 6:30 p.m. this year. The earlier start time will allow more time for conversations.

As you prepare for these meetings, please consider suggestions that you would like to make regarding the Consolidation Study, and any additional studies that we may include that will help us keep our Learning Community healthy and strong. We anticipate that we will be conducting multiple studies simultaneously.

We predict our upcoming meetings will be filled with positive energy and good thinking. We are all looking for the best solution to a difficult problem. Our collective energies and wisdom can only make us stronger. We look forward to seeing you at one or more of these meetings.