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Superintendent updates MSAD 6 on budget presentations, Steep Falls water issue, hires and enrollment
Summary
Superintendent provided updates on district budget outreach to towns, a temporary drinking‑water precaution at Steep Falls Elementary tied to Portland Water District repairs, ongoing hiring, multiple retirements/resignations, enrollment (3,297 as of April 1) and truancy counts (157 district‑wide as of April 1).
Superintendent (name not specified) told the board the administration has been presenting the proposed budget to town governments, including Buxton and Limington, and will present to Hollis, Frye Island and Standish in early May. The district budget hearing is scheduled for May 15 at Bonny Eagle High School; voting at the polls on the bottom-line budget will be June 10. The superintendent said the two-part budget process will again be on the ballot this year for voters to decide whether to keep it.
A water‑safety precaution: the superintendent reported a temporary “do not drink” notice at Steep Falls Elementary after the Portland Water District performed an interim repair to a filter. The district received notice of a longer, permanent repair scheduled to take longer; out of caution the district turned off drinking fountains and provided bottled water for consumption while testing continues. The superintendent said the repair was not expected to take more than two weeks from the second notice and that the water was safe for nonconsumptive uses such as dishwashing.
Personnel and enrollment: The superintendent said hiring is underway and several approved candidates are in the pipeline, including for hard‑to‑fill positions. The district reported a number of retirements and resignations: Ellen Moskovich (music teacher at Edna Libby) and Brian Sullivan (physical‑education teacher) will retire at the end of the year; Cliff Brown (math teacher at Bonny Eagle High School), Michael Overtco (music teacher at Steep Falls), Brianna Walker (first‑grade teacher at Hollis Elementary), Megan Walsh (fifth‑grade teacher at Hollis), Carol Gary (functional life skills teacher at Buxton Center) and Shelby McAlagh (grade 2 teacher at Edna Libby) are resigning or retiring, as announced.
Enrollment as of April 1 was reported as 3,297 students, about 25 fewer than the prior year. Truancy counts (by state definition) were 157 district‑wide as of April 1, with only nine at the elementary level — 33 fewer than the same date last year, the superintendent said, and attributed the improvement in part to deans and staff efforts to track attendance.
Field trips and activities: The superintendent listed upcoming trips, including a Bonny Eagle AP Physics visit to the Museum of Science in Boston and middle‑school overnight experiences; the drama program’s performances of Into the Woods were scheduled May 9–10. Student‑member reports highlighted prom, AP testing and the National Honor Society induction.
Ending: The board had no questions beyond requests for the water‑repair letter to be included in the minutes; the superintendent agreed to circulate the notice from Portland Water District and to follow up if testing indicated further restrictions.
