South Portland School Board hears sharp public pushback on elementary reconfiguration as leaders present nine budget scenarios

South Portland — South Portland Public Schools leaders presented nine preliminary budget scenarios at a March 2 workshop, including grade‑level reconfiguration and possible school closures, and said they will present a modeled superintendent budget next week unless the board signals otherwise.

Assistant Superintendent Johanna Prince said the leadership team ranked three plans as most promising, with plan 1.7 — which would close one elementary school and shift to grade‑band configurations — scoring highest on combined educational and financial criteria. "We have tried to think about as many possible solutions," Prince said, urging the board to give direction so the district can refine models for the superintendent's FY‑27 budget.

The district's finance director, Abigail Ketchin, said the materials include nine preliminary scenarios and stressed each carries different year‑one and long‑term costs and staffing impacts. Ketchin told the board the presentations model moving costs, potential portables and FTE reductions and cautioned that some scenarios require purchasing or renting modular classroom units; the district modeled a purchase price of $270,000 per portable (installation included) and a $100,000 rental alternative.

Operations Director Mike Nally flagged a pressing facilities issue at Skillen Elementary, telling the board: "Skillen will require an HVAC system replacement in the relatively near future with an estimated cost of approximately $3,000,000." He said the building's system is aging, parts are obsolete and a single failure could force an immediate, costly replacement.

Board members pressed for more academic evidence tying reconfiguration to improved outcomes. "Nowhere in the presentation is the difference in academic outcomes amongst the elementary schools," Member Richardson said, asking the district to add achievement data to the analysis. Prince and other leaders acknowledged that the current packet did not duplicate prior achievement modeling but said they could bring those comparisons back to the board; Prince said the district believes reconfiguration is a tool to reduce disparities after showing large demographic and resource gaps across schools.

Several board members also asked about pre‑K capacity, enrollment projections and transportation. The district said it currently offers 64 in‑house pre‑K seats plus 16 partner seats and hopes to expand to 128 seats (six classrooms) next year. On transportation, leaders said route and driver‑hour changes are expected but that the district has not yet produced a final cost projection.

The workshop produced sharp statements of preference. Board member Dowling said he could not support options that close Skillen, another board member echoed opposition to closing Kahler, and several members said they want alternatives explored and more detailed redistricting mechanics before committing to a plan. The district said the default superintendent model to present next week would be plan 1.7 unless four or more board members indicate they prefer a different option.

Public comment that followed was extensive and largely critical of proposals that would close or substantially reassign neighborhood schools. Parents, teachers and PTA leaders raised recurring concerns about equity, longer bus rides for low‑income families, loss of neighborhood stability and impacts on special education services. Sarah Gay, president of the South Portland Teachers Association, asked for clearer timelines on staff notifications and expressed anxiety about how positions would be affected. Parent and survey organizer Rachel Gallo said a quick parent survey found strong opposition across schools and reported that a majority of respondents did not believe reconfiguration would improve academic supports.

Multiple speakers urged the board to explore other savings — for example, administrative staffing changes — and to slow the process to allow more outreach to multilingual and working families. The board chair reiterated that the district is not running an accounting deficit but must cut about $7–8 million to meet the guidance on budget increase limits and reminded the public of upcoming meetings, including a regular board meeting March 9 and additional budget workshops later in the month.

Next steps: The district will bring a superintendent budget model to the board next week based on the leadership team's chosen scenario unless the board signals an alternative preference; more detailed analyses on academic outcomes, transportation cost estimates, facility timing for Skillen's HVAC and human‑centered staff notification plans were requested by board members and public commenters.