Select Board appoints three members to school-withdrawal committee, outlines tight timeline

The Harrison Select Board on July 9 appointed two public members and a municipal official to the town's newly formed school-district withdrawal committee, as residents and board members pressed for clarity on the statutory timeline and the criteria the committee must use to determine whether withdrawal is practicable.

The board selected Amy Gary and Andrea Lavery as the two public appointees and named Deborah Kane as the municipal official representative. The appointments were each made by motion and approved without recorded opposition. The board noted the district will also appoint one committee member and that the district chair may call the committee's first meeting as soon as July 23.

The board and residents asked the committee to evaluate a range of issues before recommending withdrawal, including a financial comparison of per-pupil costs, the impact on town tax rates, the condition and future cost of maintaining Harrison Elementary School, and whether educational outcomes would improve under alternative districts or local operation. "One of the most important questions to answer first is whether there is an option that keeps Harrison Elementary open," a select board member said during the discussion.

Board members referenced a statutory timeline that requires an initial deliverable to the commissioner within 90 days of forming a withdrawal committee; the town manager and other members noted the committee can request an extension if necessary and that consultant and attorney assistance are standard practice for withdrawal committees. "Withdrawal committees typically have a consultant and lawyer because there's stuff that, as a layperson, we don't know the law for," one member said.

Residents who applied to the committee addressed availability and prior experience. Applicant Kim Reynolds, who said she had volunteered on the elementary-school building committee, described the learning curve involved with district work and emphasized the need to weigh both building and academic factors.

Board members emphasized the need for a public communications plan and transparency. The board reiterated the initial committee task: develop an analysis to determine whether withdrawal is practicable and, if so, how to proceed with next steps and public votes. They also discussed the scope of the committee's work, potential budget and staff-resource needs, and the town's ability to pause the process if it proved unworkable.

Next steps: the board appointed its members and asked the town manager to contact the district chair about scheduling the committee's first meeting; the board will expect the committee to organize, select its chair, and engage consultants and counsel as necessary.