FARMINGTON – The formula used by the state to calculate school subsidy allocations will be the focus of a meeting on July 17, as the Maine State Legislature evaluates the system. The meeting will be held from 5:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. at the W.G. Mallett School.
Four public stakeholder forums have been scheduled in Farmington, Bangor, Portland and Presque Isle this week, as the legislature seeks input on the Essential Programs and Services funding model, which is used to allocate state funds to Maine school districts. The legislature contracted Lawrence O. Picus and Associates, a consulting firm that has worked with a number of states on school subsidy issues, to conduct the evaluation.
Locally, school administrators and board directors have expressed concerns about the formula in the past, saying it doesn’t work in the state’s smaller, rural districts. Those in local districts have cited the teacher-to-pupil ratio as being unfair to small school districts trying to provide specialized programming such as foreign languages, and taken issue with other elements of the formula. For example, the transportation section of EPS, with critics arguing that rural districts are more likely to have significantly higher transportation costs than larger, urban districts.
The Lawrence O. Picus and Associates firm is seeking input on EPS-related topics, including what resources EPS should use to calculate revenue, how revenues are raised and distributed, the overall level of education spending in Maine and teacher compensation.
The firm has already produced an initial report, presented to the legislature’s committee on education and cultural affairs earlier this year, which can be found here, on the legislature’s website. In the executive summary, the firm indicates that it believes the EPS formula is “equitable,” compared to other states, but it did make a number of preliminary recommendations. Another report will developed for the legislature in the future.
The dates, times and locations of all four forums have been listed below. All forums run from 5:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.
Presque Isle on July 16 – Presque Isle High School, auditorium, 16 Griffin Street.
Farmington on July 17 – W.G. Mallett School, Room 103, 116 Middle Street.
Bangor on July 17 – Bangor High School, lecture hall, 885 Broadway.
Portland on July 18 – Casco Bay High School, second floor, 196 Allen Avenue.
Supporters and detractors of public schools alike should be certain to attend this meeting. Have your voices heard and let Augusta know that we are paying attention to a broken system.