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RSU 23 board adopts revisions to graduation and other policies after debate on internships
Summary
At its Oct. 19 meeting, the RSU 23 board approved a revision to the district's IKF High School Graduation policy in a 4–1 vote and unanimously approved changes to three other policies, following discussion about whether internships should be a graduation requirement.
The RSU 23 School Board on Oct. 19 approved revisions to its High School Graduation policy and accepted changes to several other district policies after a brief debate over whether internships should be required for graduation.
The board voted 4–1 to accept the revision to policy IKF (High School Graduation) after members discussed whether the district should make an internship a graduation requirement. Board member Peter Flaherty moved the motion; Stu Hogan seconded it. Board member David Boudreau expressed reservations about making an internship a mandatory graduation requirement but did not block adoption.
In the same meeting the board unanimously approved revisions to IKFF (Multiple Pathways), JL (Wellness) and GCD-R (Recruiting, Hiring & Employment Change Procedures). Michelle Violette moved the omnibus motion to accept those revisions; Stu Hogan seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.
Peter Flaherty also read first readings of two additional policies—KCD (Gifts to the Schools) and DGD (Fiscal Management of Credit Cards)—which the board did not vote on at this meeting.
Why it matters: Changes to IKF and related policies can affect graduation pathways and how the district documents and credits student experiences such as internships. Board members said they wanted to ensure students receive appropriate experiences without unintentionally creating a barrier to graduation.
What the board did: The meeting minutes show the following formal actions on policy items: acceptance of the IKF revision (4–1), acceptance of revisions to IKFF, JL and GCD-R (unanimous), and first readings of KCD and DGD. The board did not specify text changes in the meeting minutes; the policies were read into the record and recorded as presented.
Next steps: The revised policies will be reflected in the district policy manual as voting results are processed. The board did not set a separate timeline for implementing any new graduation requirements; discussion at the meeting indicated members want to be cautious about making changes that would automatically require all students to complete internships.
Votes at a glance: • IKF (High School Graduation) — motion by Peter Flaherty; seconded by Stu Hogan; outcome: approved 4–1. • IKFF (Multiple Pathways), JL (Wellness), GCD-R (Recruiting, Hiring & Employment Change Procedures) — motion by Michelle Violette; seconded by Stu Hogan; outcome: approved unanimously.
The board’s official minutes list Peter Flaherty, Michelle Violette, Stu Hogan, Carol Marcotte and David Boudreau as the members present; Superintendent John Suttie was listed as present and participated in the superintendent’s report but is not recorded as casting votes in the minutes.
