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Candidates back RSU 87 partnership as enrollment shifts spur talk of new elementary space
Summary
Forum candidates largely supported continuing the tuition arrangement with RSU 87 and urged analysis of why enrollment changed; one candidate proposed buying land near the elementary school to add capacity and reduce crowding at the middle school.
Candidates discussed enrollment pressures and the district's long-term relationship with RSU 87, the sending district that pays tuition for high-school students to attend Hermon.
Several candidates called the RSU 87 partnership an asset that brings students and resources to Hermon and said decisions about whether RSU 87 towns continue to send students rest with those towns. "They'll be more than welcome to come if they decide to continue," one candidate said.
Speakers reported that the district had seen a notable enrollment drop described during the forum as the largest decline since 2006; candidates recommended studying causes (moving out of town, homeschooling, private-school enrollment) before planning responses. One candidate proposed buying land near the elementary school and building a small additional elementary campus to relieve overcrowding and lower middle-school ratios.
No budget figures, timelines or formal commitments to pursue land acquisition were presented. Candidates urged town-level collaboration, careful ratio analysis, and monitoring building permits and development activity that affect enrollment patterns.
