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School board incumbent Sarah Langette highlights special-education costs, transparency and new classroom cell-phone limits
Summary
Incumbent Sarah Langette told a Belgrade forum RSU 18 faces heavy special-education costs and credited administrative savings for balancing a robust budget; she announced the district will restrict cell-phone use during classroom time and reminded residents about upcoming budget meetings and a June 9 referendum.
Sarah Langette, a six-year member of the RSU 18 school board seeking another term, used her forum appearance to highlight special-education funding pressures, recent budget management steps and a forthcoming district policy on student cell-phone use.
Langette said families sometimes move into RSU 18 because of the district’s strong special-education services and that the district has absorbed the extra cost. She credited the superintendent with stabilizing operations and described the current budget as "the most robust budget [the district] has seen in six years," saying operational decisions last year produced about $380,000 in savings that were redirected into salaries and other priorities.
On student-device policy, Langette said the district is moving to restrict cell-phone use during classroom instruction beginning with the coming school year: "Phones will not be used during class time," she said, though students may still carry devices and use them outside instructional periods. She said a formal policy must be prepared before the school year begins.
Langette described steps the board has taken to increase transparency: recording meetings and posting them online, adding a school-board page to the town's annual report and improving the website to make information accessible. She urged parents to follow the district chain of command (teacher → principal → superintendent → school board) for classroom and administrative concerns but said residents may bring unresolved issues to board meetings.
She closed by urging attendance at two near-term budget events: the school district "pack" (budget) meeting at the high school performance-arts center and the June 9 referendum vote on the budget.
Langette’s remarks framed continuing transparency and operational stability as central to attracting staff and sustaining academic programs.
