Board approves community engagement strategy; community park project gets volunteer help but needs wood chips

The East Kingston School Board reaffirmed its community engagement goal and asked district representatives to use a flexible approach to outreach — for example, the school and SAU websites, the public library and school‑sponsored organizations — rather than requiring a specific town agency newsletter.

Board members named JT the lead for goal implementation and said the library director, Zoe, has a standing deadline (the 17th of each month) for items the library will share. The board also emphasized keeping strong ties to the PTO, using the general store as a local posting point, and maintaining the school and SAU websites for meeting dates and materials.

Separately, the board discussed the community park project tied to the school. Members congratulated staff on meeting a bench fundraising goal and reported that volunteers have delivered some wood chips but more are needed. A local student seeking an Eagle Scout project wants to build a flexible seating bench; the student has been invited to propose the idea at an upcoming meeting. Board members suggested posting a request for wood chips on the town Facebook page and checking construction companies or wood‑chip suppliers.

The board did not take formal votes on outreach language or park tasks but assigned JT to lead the community engagement goal and encouraged staff to coordinate with the library director, the PTO and local businesses on outreach and park work. The board asked staff to bring an update to the September meeting about outreach actions and the park volunteer schedule.