MEXICO – Residents of the 16-town vocational school region have a chance on Tuesday to act on a proposed 2003-2004 $1 million vocational budget and a $203,000 adult and community education budget.

The town meeting-style budget vote takes place at 6:30 p.m. in the River Road school.

Director Deborah Guimont said the $1,003,280 vocational education budget is up about 5.8 percent from last year’s approved figure. Driving the increase are increases in the salaries of instructors to average those paid by the schools sending students to Region 9 and higher health insurance premium costs.

If passed as proposed, SAD 21 would pay $234,267; SAD 43, $438,628; SAD 44, $214,329; Peru, $86,978; Hanover, $12,461; Gilead, $9,968; and Upton, $249.

Of the 160-plus students attending the vocational school, SAD 43 sends 70; SAD 21 sends almost 40; SAD 44 sends almost 35; and the remainder come from the unaffiliated towns.

Guimont said nearly 200 students have shown interest in attending one of the vocational offerings during the upcoming school year.

If the adult and community education budget is passed, SAD 21 would pay $18,686; SAD 43, $66,267; SAD 44, $14,333; Peru, $4,479; Hanover, $608; Gilead, $372; and Upton, $146. About $6,300 of the $14,433 assessed to SAD 44 will be returned to that district during the upcoming year, however, to make up for a lack of services provided in the Bethel area.

Plans are to try to bring several adult education offerings to the Bethel area next year, such as truck driving and certified nursing assistant training.

Building purchase

Voters will also vote again on the purchase of the building currently used by the vocational and adult education programs. Approval was granted last year to buy the building at a cost of $532,328 over a 10-year period. However, minor erroneous wording in the article discovered by attorneys require that the matter be voted on again. School officials plan to close on the property this week.

Following the vote, a regular monthly board meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m.

Guimont said the board will decide how to compensate the school’s two forestry instructors for additional work they put in over April vacation because of vandalism to a skidder.

She said an as-yet undetermined amount of damage was caused when someone took it for a joy ride near its place of wood cutting at Frye’s Crossing in Roxbury.

The board will also adopt the operating budgets for the next school year, act on a school calendar for the year and appoint committees for the upcoming year.

eadams@sunjournal.com

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