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Residents urge RSU 38 board to reconsider consolidation of kindergarten seats
Summary
Residents from Wayne and Mount Vernon told the RSU 38 board the decision to consolidate pre-K and kindergarten was premature and lacked community input, urging a strategic planning process and consideration of alternatives before implementation.
At a RSU 38 Board of Directors meeting, residents from Wayne and Mount Vernon pressed the board to reverse or pause a recent decision to consolidate pre-K and kindergarten programming for the 2026–27 school year.
Anna Libby of Mount Vernon said the consolidation “felt like a very solid step towards consolidation and closing of our schools,” and told the board the plan lacked adequate community input and analysis of budget, transportation and logistics. Libby asked the board to reconsider and to pursue a strategic planning process that includes affected families.
Several other residents echoed those concerns. Holly Stevenson of Wayne, a former board member and board chair, said Wayne families and municipal leaders deserve “time” and a voice in this decision. Susan Harmon, who served on the reorganization planning committee, called the vote premature and pointed the board to sections of the 2009 reorganization plan that allow local advisory committees to submit proposed local school budgets and request municipal appropriations as alternatives to district-funded changes.
Hazel Stevenson of Wayne described the vote as “unsupported by facts and data” and urged the superintendent to support rescission. Kenneth Marr, a Wayne parent, said enrollment shifts and family choices (homeschooling, private school) were factors in the district’s report and recommended short-term options such as multi-age pre-K/kindergarten instead of removal of local offerings.
Speakers repeatedly criticized the process and timing: Nancy Martin said many families and advisory committee members learned of the change only after the vote, and urged greater transparency and earlier community engagement in decisions affecting young children.
The board chair had earlier read a statement reminding the public that local advisory committees are advisory only and that legal governance resides with the RSU board under state law; residents said that statement did not address their concerns about process, data and alternatives.
The board did not reverse the decision during the meeting. Members of the public said they expect further opportunities for discussion and asked that the district present clear data and a strategic plan before changes take effect.
