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Orange committee narrows Fisher Hill School Choice to town residents and staff children
Summary
The Orange Elementary School Committee voted unanimously April 14 to limit Fisher Hill School Choice seats to Orange residents and children of Fisher Hill or Mahar Regional staff, citing equity and local resource concerns; the policy has material fiscal implications tied to per-pupil flows.
The Orange Elementary School Committee voted unanimously April 14 to restrict Fisher Hill School Choice seats to residents of Orange and children of Fisher Hill or Mahar Regional staff.
The motion, made by Frank Hains and seconded by Josefa Scherer, was presented and adopted during the committee’s April meeting. Roll call was taken by Mallory Ellis.
Committee members framed the decision as a move to promote an equitable educational environment and to focus district resources on local students. The record notes that the district receives about $5,000 when it enrolls a School Choice student from another district; conversely, the district would lose roughly $5,000 if an Orange student attends another district under School Choice and about $9,742 if the student attends a virtual school. Those figures were discussed as context for the policy change.
The committee said a public meeting on School Choice had been held the previous month where the policy and community input were discussed. The adopted language limits Fisher Hill attendance under School Choice to town residents and to children of staff from Fisher Hill or Mahar Regional.
The committee did not record dissent; the motion passed unanimously.
Next steps: The committee’s action establishes the School Choice policy position for FY26; implementation details (seat counts and enrollment procedures) were not specified at the meeting.
