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Board recommends — and voters approve — zero in/zero out open‑enrollment designation
Summary
Stratham’s board recommended designating the district an open‑enrollment school with 0% in and 0% out to preserve local funding while state legislation remains uncertain; voters approved the warrant article by voice vote.
Stratham — The Stratham School Board and voters agreed to classify Stratham Memorial School as an open‑enrollment school while setting both incoming and outgoing percentages at 0%, a move the board described as protective and temporary while state law remains unsettled.
Board member Kathleen Peek told voters the proposed article would allow the district to be designated under New Hampshire RSA 194‑D but to admit "zero non‑resident students" and permit "0% of resident pupils" to attend other districts. Peek said the board’s chief concern was the uncertainty around how state bills would address funding; many versions circulating at the State House would transfer 80% to possibly 100% of a sending district’s per‑pupil amount with unclear treatment of base adequacy aid. "If we get a student from a town that only spends $10,000 per student, we could possibly get 80% of that $10,000 — only $8,000 — and we would have to make up the difference here," Peek said.
Supporters told the meeting the board’s approach preserves local control while lawmakers finalize language at the state level. The article was moved, seconded, debated and approved by voice vote; a subsequent motion to restrict reconsideration carried.
What’s next: The district will revisit its open‑enrollment position if the legislature finalizes a funding scheme the board judges fiscally responsible.
