The slide presentation from the public forums held in October for Westford, Essex Junction, and Essex Town Vermont residents. Presented by the RED Study Committee. For more information, visit http://redstudy.wordpress.com.

1. “Better Together”
Creating a unified school district for Essex Junction, Essex
Town, and Westford.

3. Agenda
• Overview of the Study Process
• Highlights of the Proposal:
• Governance
• Educational Opportunities & Excellence
• Cost-Benefit Analysis
• New Board Formation & Terms
• 3 Potential Outcomes
• Discussion and Questions

4. Guiding Principles
1. Will a unified school district lead to more
opportunities, better outcomes, and an
enhanced experience for kids?
2. Can a unified school district make education
more affordable today and into the future?

5. The Study Process
• All three school boards voted unanimously on Dec. 16, 2014 to form a
committee which would study a change in governance structure.
• The 20-member committee first met on March 4, 2015.
• All meetings were open to the public. Videos of each meeting are
available online, with some meetings being aired on RETN.
• A website was developed housing all of the information considered
by the committee in its deliberations (http://redstudy.wordpress.com).
• On June 30, 2015 the Committee voted unanimously to support a
proposal to form a unified school district under Act 46.
• On Aug 3, a full report was submitted to the Agency of Education.
• On August 18, the Vermont State Board of Education unanimously
approved the proposal.
• If approved on Nov. 3, the unified school district begins July 1, 2017.

6. Benefits of a Unified Union
• Streamlined governance will mean greater transparency
and accountability.
• Opportunities for an enhanced and expanded
educational experience for all students.
• A reduction in property tax rates for five years.
• More predictable and stable property taxes in the future.
• Cost savings of at least $1 million after the third year.
• Efficiencies of scale in contracting, budgeting, and
operations.
• Opportunities for improved professional development
and career advancement for teachers and support staff.
• And more…

7. Research
• One of the most comprehensive reviews of literature on
economies of scale in education, Andrews, Duncombe, and
Yinger (2002) concluded:
"The best of the cost function studies suggest that sizable
potential cost savings in instructional and administrative
costs may exist by moving from a very small district (500
or fewer pupils) to a district with between 2000-4000
pupils….Districts enrolling over 2,000 pupils are able to
produce comparable outcomes to smaller districts at much
lower per pupil costs.”
The proposed unified school district would
have approximately 4,000 students.

8. Governance
• From 5 school boards to 1; From 5 budgets to 1.
• Proportional board representation.
• Greater understanding and strategic management of
resources across PreK-12 systems.
• Less complexity, one governance structure.
• Time and resource savings to deploy resources back to
schools.
• Board member service and retention (In April 2015,
there were 4 open seats, no contested races).
• Potential for greater voter engagement.

9. Eliminate Redundancy
• Superintendent Offices -
Staffing/Physical Location
• Curriculum/Assessments and
Personal Learning Plans
• School Calendars
• Policies
• Teacher Negotiated Agreement &
Support Staff Agreement
• Electronic Systems
• Human Resources
• Student Management Data
Systems
• Annual Meetings
• Board Meetings
• Reporting Requirements
• Child Nutrition Services
• Professional Development
Planning
• Property Services
• Technology Plans
• Budget Development
• Audits
• Contracts: › Transportation › Fuel ›
Copiers/Printers › Plowing ›
Recycling/Trash
• Financial Systems
• Website/Communications
• Legal Services/Statutory
Compliance

10. Opportunities & Excellence
• Expansion of programs across the district through
economies of scale.
• Could we create magnet schools and/or specialized
programs within a larger system?
• Students would have access to great programs across ALL
schools.
• Leverage the talents and expertise of our teachers and
support staff.
• Share best practices from each school.
• Greater consistency in the preparation of PK-8 students
who attend EHS or CTE, resulting in a more seamless ninth
grade transition for students.

11. Cost Saving Opportunities
• Budgets and tax rates will be easier to understand - one
budget and tax rate, no need to build separate preK-8 and
9-12 budgets.
• Reduces the number of State, Federal, and IRS reports and
eliminates intergovernmental accounting transactions.
• Reduces the number of independent audits, which alone
results in about $40,000 in savings.
• Lowers the possibility of exceeding the excess spending tax
penalty threshold.
• Eliminates the need for equalized pupil "hold harmless"
protection. Westford would lose protection and see a spike
in tax rates without formation of a unified union.

12. Cost Benefit Analysis

13. Tax Rate Modeling

14. Challenges
• While the Committee believes the “pros” outweigh the
“cons” when it comes to creating a unified school district,
potential challenges include:
• What will Montpelier do? Despite the incentives, will the
State significantly increase the homestead tax rate,
which has an impact on our local taxes.
• The new school board would have to “make good” on
many of the potential benefits identified by the
Committee.
• How would a new board handle the question of
transportation?
• Once approved, the transition to a unified district could
be complicated.

15. Westford
• School Choice
• Westford students graduating from Grade 8 currently have school choice,
although the majority attend EHS. The proposal contains a “grandfather”
clause to preserve school choice for Westford students until 2020. After
that, all Westford students would matriculate to Essex High School.
However, school choice would still be available through Act 129.
• School Closures
• The Committee also sought to assure Westford residents that their local
school would not be subject to closure. For at least four years, no action
would be taken to close any school buildings in a unified district.
• Property
• Language was also included in the proposal that in the event of any future
school closures or reconfiguration, the local community would have the
ability to take ownership of property for continued recreational and
educational use.
• Second Vote
• If voters in Westford reject the proposal initially, they would have 8
months to reconsider the question.

16. Potential Outcome #1
• If Essex Junction and/or Essex Town residents vote no,
there would be no immediate changes to our district
structure.
• However, according to Act 46, districts need to conduct a
self-study and make a case for why the current system
serve students better than a unified district.
• The school boards would also be required to meet with
other boards and discuss collaboration. The AOE would
then decide whether to mandate a merger in 2019.

17. Potential Outcome #2
• If Essex Town & Essex Junction vote "yes," but Westford votes
"no," a Regional Education District would be formed by ET & EJ.
• Residents of Essex Town and Essex Junction benefit from the 4-
year tax incentives: 8 cent reduction in the first year, 6, 4, and 2.
• Westford residents would not receive any tax incentive and
would see its taxes increase due to the loss of the hold harmless
waiver based on declining enrollment/phantom students.
• Westford could have a second vote and join the RED in 2016. If
not, then it could be assigned to a different school district.
• In conjunction with its new district, the Westford school board
would need to conduct a self-study and make a case for why the
current system serve students better than a unified district.
• The Agency of Education would then decide whether to mandate
consolidation in 2019.

18. Potential Outcome #3
• If Westford, Essex Junction, and Essex Town all vote "yes,"
then a unified school district would be created.
• Residents of all three communities would benefit from the
5-year tax incentives: 10 cent reduction in the first year,
then 8, 6, 4, and 2.
• The new board would be sworn in as soon as practicable to
begin the transition, including establishing policy, hiring a
superintendent, working with teachers and support staff
on contracts, and developing an annual budget for unified
district for FY18.
• The new district would officially begin operating July
1, 2017 and former boards and SU would be dissolved.

19. The New School Board
• If a unified union is approved, a 10 member board would
be elected on Nov. 3.
• The new board make-up is based on town population.
Town/District 1 Year Term 2 Year Term 3 Year Term
Essex Junction 2 1 1
Essex Town 1 1 2
Westford* 1 1
*Board members from Westford would each have a 0.5 vote.

20. Realizing Opportunities
• School Board will engage with communities to set mission, vision
and policies to reflect communities' shared educational values.
• Policies will define priorities for the district and operational
parameters.
• School Board and administration will work together to determine
best structure to support student outcomes, local voice, and
effective, efficient operation.
• School Board will hire superintendent and negotiate contracts.
• Superintendent will be responsible for operational oversight,
development of a strategic plan to achieve mission of district, and
ensuring quality of education and equity of opportunities within
the system.
• School Board will monitor student progress and policy
compliance, and engage with community.

21. Vote!
• Make sure your voice is heard!
• Vote on the proposal for a unified school district
and elect members of the new board on Tuesday,
November 3, 2015!
• For more information, visit
http://redstudy.wordpress.com.
Thank You!