RSU 14 budget heads to voters after board approval; middle school bond and pre-K expansion drive increase

The RSU 14 (Windham-Raymond) Board of Directors presented details of the budget that will appear on the June 10 public ballot, emphasizing teacher-contract costs, a new middle school bond and an expansion of prekindergarten slots.

Superintendent Chris Howell told the board the budget approved by the board on April 9 will be presented to voters on June 10 following a budget-validation meeting set for May 14 at 6:30 p.m. in the Windham High School auditorium; absentee voting was described in the meeting as available beginning May 15. Howell said the budget submitted to voters represents a 12.75% increase overall and that state subsidy has increased by about 19%, which the administration said offsets roughly half of the district’s increase when combined with carryover funds.

Howell said three primary drivers explain the increase: the second year of a teacher contract negotiated last year (a multi-year catch-up intended to move staff toward the Cumberland County average), financing related to the new middle school, and an expansion of district pre‑K slots. He described the budget as comprising three “buckets”: regular year-over-year expenses (about 5.6% of the increase), a 6% increase tied to the new middle school, and roughly 1% associated with adding 59 pre‑K slots.

On the middle school, Howell said the district settled on an initial $105,000,000 bond at a 4.07% interest rate; he said about 90% of that bond is expected to be subsidy-supported, and the district is initially financing the state portion so local taxpayer cost in the first year will be limited. On the pre‑K expansion, Howell said the roughly $600,000 cost is largely offset by about $510,000 in additional subsidy.

Howell also reported construction progress on the middle school: nearly 2,000 cubic yards of concrete poured in a bit more than a month, representing roughly one third of the front wing. He said site-walk scheduling for the board is underway and that work on elevator shafts, stairwells and concrete block will begin soon.

Board members who spoke during the roundtable reiterated messaging for the public: Jessica Bridal (board member) and Jody Carroll emphasized the need to explain to voters the effective tax-rate impact (noting a 6.4% effective tax-rate increase was mentioned during discussion), while Joe Kellner and others urged outreach to help residents understand the tradeoffs in the budget.

Why it matters: voters, not the board, are the district’s legislative body for the RSU 14 budget. The board approved the budget on April 9 and will present it for public validation and final voter approval on June 10; the vote will determine how the district pays for teacher compensation increases, the new combined middle school, and added pre‑K capacity.

What’s next: budget-validation hearing May 14 at 6:30 p.m.; absentee voting described in the meeting as beginning May 15, and the public vote is scheduled for June 10.

Sources: superintendent’s report to the RSU 14 Board of Directors and board-member remarks, RSU 14 regular meeting, May 7, 2025.