SAU 32 Monthly News

Welcome to 2024 Plainfield School District!

As I started to write this update on MLK Jr. Day, I feel proud to be part of this community that's so focused on inclusion and belonging for all students. To quote this amazing leader:

"Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal, and the fact from the fiction. the function of education, therefore, is to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character -- that is the true goal of education."

Read more for updates on our district happenings:

Upcoming Public Hearing:

Please be sure to join the Plainfield School Board for their Public Hearing as we prepare for the upcoming Annual Meeting. The public hearing will be held at PES in the Music Room at 5:30 on January 23rd. We hope to see you there! All documents for this meeting will be available online for your review by this Friday.

Please read below and be sure to review the attachments here to get more information.

Survey Results and Committee Updates:

The district is doing complex and important work. Many thanks to everyone who completed our recent school district survey -your voices have been heard and will help drive and guide the future work of our committees and the School Board. If you haven’t yet had a chance to review the survey results, they’re attached below.

Committee Work:

Several committees have been working towards gathering community input to develop future plans. The Middle School Study Committee is exploring the option of a combined middle school with Cornish in grades 6-8. A comprehensive study (attached below) has been reviewed by the Board, and a warrant article will come before all voters at this year's Annual Meeting to determine the community's interest in continuing this work. As a reminder, approval of this warrant article at this stage only indicates further in-depth study of this possibility, not a definitive decision to make it happen. The Middle School report contains a lot of great information about this possibility -- please be sure to curl up by the fire on one of these snowy days and take a look!

The Capital Facilities Planning Committee has been working to review prior plans, current needs, and incorporate the results of the survey to develop a list of facilities and grounds priorities and suggestions. This priority list can be reviewed here (see attached memo below) and outlines which projects need to be done soon, which can wait, which should be combined with a larger project if one takes place, and which might not need to be done at all. As with all reports, please feel free to send your input via email or directly to the board at upcoming meetings.

Cooperative School District Study:

As was presented at the Joint Board Meeting and followed up at our local meeting, the Board is considering an official study for a cooperative school district with Cornish. This will be voted on at the upcoming annual meeting on a warrant article, but it's important to remember that this warrant only approves a study committee -- not the creation of the district. There are many benefits to consider with a cooperative, including student services, leveraging efficiencies in operations, and the potential of sharing fiscal resources to benefit taxpayers. More information about cooperative districts can be found by clicking this link to Forms of School Organizations in New Hampshire.

As I send out these monthly newsletters, I'll be including information regarding education news from around the State of New Hampshire and our Department of Education (NHED).

Several critical bills have been heard this past week on education. Last Wednesday, the House Education Committee heard a slate of bills related specifically to school funding. One included raising the adequacy amount per student from $4,100 to $10,000 and another proposed raising the adequacy amount of aid for each identified special education student from $2,142 to $27,000. These changes would greatly alleviate the burden on local taxpayers, though of course the state would need to develop a new system for education funding through taxation to allow these move forward. The $10,000 amount aligns closely with the recent ConVal lawsuit ruling where the Superior Court ruled that the current amount of base adequacy per student is unconstitutional. I provided direct testimony on behalf of Plainfield, citing the increased tax burden on small, rural NH communities.

Upcoming bills this next week focus on equity issues related to eligibility for school meals, expansion of the voucher program, state assessments, and clarifying definitions around censorship in curriculum materials. Click here to read This Week's NH House Bill Schedule.

The New Hampshire Legislature has already documented over 200 proposed bills relating to education. It's shaping up to be a very busy legislative season. If you're interested in learning more, please be sure to visit the NH Legislature page to see the full calendar and all drafts.