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Wayne board debates citing 2011 RSU legal opinion, asks manager to revise letter and appoints representative
Summary
The Town of Wayne Select Board debated whether to cite or quote a 2011 legal opinion from RSU counsel in a draft letter opposing the proposed Wayne kindergarten closure, voted to have the town manager revise highlighted language to reference the 2011 letter, and appointed Theresa Persner as the town representative to the RSU 38 planning committee.
The Town of Wayne Select Board discussed final language for a draft letter to Regional School Unit (RSU) 38 about the proposed closure of the Wayne kindergarten. Members disagreed over whether the draft should quote a 2011 legal opinion from RSU counsel (Drummond Woodson) that noted some doubt about the reorganization plan's intent.
Chair summarized language from the legal opinion for the board, reading from counsel's letter: "Based on our review of the relevant main statutes and the RSU 38 reorganization plan, it is our opinion that a reviewing court would more would be more likely than not to conclude that the RSU board has authority to implement the proposed reconfigure of grade levels and attendance boundaries ... Although we believe that the school board would prevail if a legal challenge were brought ... any uncertainty concerning the board's authority could be eliminated by amending the reorganization plan to expressly clarify the board's authority." The board debated whether quoting that letter would overstate or accurately preserve an argument for later use.
Town legal counsel (as relayed by Shannon) had advised either removing the highlighted sentence that states there is a legal opinion or rewording it to specify that the board was "aware of" a 2011 letter from RSU legal counsel recognizing language that "could be argued" the reorganization plan intended not to permit the configuration. Some members favored keeping that reference to preserve a "wedge" argument; others worried it weakened the overall case.
After discussion, the board voted to have Town Manager Shannon revise the highlighted language to reference the 2011 RSU legal letter per counsel's recommendation and to authorize the revised letter to be signed by board members without further board action once the editing is complete. The motion passed 4-0.
Separately, the board appointed Theresa Persner as the Town of Wayne's representative to the RSU 38 planning committee; that motion also carried 4-0.
What happens next: Shannon will redraft the highlighted paragraph to reference the 2011 RSU legal opinion in a way counsel recommended, circulate the revised letter for signatures, and post/send the finalized letter to RSU 38 as addressed to the superintendent and board.
