AUGUSTA – Consolidation plans from school systems all over Maine poured into the Maine Department of Education office Friday.

It was the deadline for districts to tell the state whom they’re merging with, or if they’re staying single.

Saying Maine spends too much on school administration, the goal of the state consolidation law passed by legislators last spring is to consolidate Maine’s 290 school districts into 80.

The goal is to save taxpayers money and improve education.

The targeted minimum number of students in the new districts is 2,500.

As of 7 p.m. Friday, at least 267 school systems had filed notices of intent, according to David Connerty-Marin, director of communications for the Maine Department of Education.

“They’re coming in fast and furious,” state education Commissioner Susan Gendron said. Overall, she was pleased with the efforts. “There’s still a few pockets of places, East Machias is one, absolutely opposed to the law. But, overall, folks are working very hard.”

SAD 58 in Kingfield and SAD 9 in Farmington are examples of two systems planning to merge into one.

That new district would run from near the Canadian border to Farmington, including 14 towns and the tiny Coplin Plantation. It would have about 3,300 students.

It would also mean that one of the two superintendents would no longer be superintendent.

SAD 9 Superintendent Michael Cormier, who works in Farmington, and SAD 58 Superintendent Quenten Clark, who works in Phillips, both cited educational advantages to merging.

“We’re very compatible,” Cormier said.

Students would have more choices, Clark said. Students could pick which high school they want to attend: the large Mt. Blue “with a Class A football team, or a small Class C (Mt Abram) where everybody knows everybody and plays soccer,” Clark said.

But when it comes to saving taxpayers’ money – the reason the law was pushed by Gov. John Baldacci – “that’s nonsense,” Clark said. The consolidation goes after “fat cat” superintendents,” Clark said sarcastically, but not after the big cost drivers in school budgets: health benefits, teacher salaries and energy costs.

Gendron: law will be changed to avoid taxpayers paying more

Other superintendents interviewed also raised concerns that merging will cost taxpayers more. That’s one reason why the Auburn School Department chose not to merge with SAD 52 or Union 29, said interim Superintendent Tom Morrill.

Merging with SAD 52 would cost Auburn taxpayers about $1.5 million more, largely because Auburn property valuations are higher, which means Auburn would pay for a bigger share of the new district. And Auburn pays its teachers more. With one teacher contract for a bigger district, many teachers would have to be paid more, superintendents said.

But those merger cost projections don’t include what cuts can be made after mergers, Gendron said.

“I would hope they’re going to continue to look at what efficiencies can be implemented. There’s been some assumptions that there may be costs before we drill down further,” Gendron said.

Some after-merger cost projections do come out higher, she acknowledged, because municipalities get different amounts of state money for education. When one town that gets a higher percentage is combined with another that gets less, one may pay more, another less. “In some instances it doesn’t appear to be advantageous,” she said.

That’s not the intent of the law, she said.

Gendron pledged her department will work with lawmakers to fine-tune the law and correct those situations. “We will introduce legislation to remove those barriers.”

Mergers in Androscoggin, Oxford and Franklin counties

Looking at merger plans in Androscoggin, Oxford and Franklin counties, most school districts have found a partner. In some cases, two or three. Some districts, including Lisbon, Durham and Buckfield, have filed two or more merger plans.

Four districts – Lewiston, Auburn, SAD 17 in Oxford Hills and SAD 52 (Turner, Leeds, Greene) – plan to stay single.

Lewiston, Auburn and SAD 17 all have the minimum 2,500 student populations. SAD 52 is close at 2,170 students.

Meanwhile Litchfield-Sabattus-Wales’ School Union 44 is technically consolidating, but it’s merger plan isn’t as radical as most.

Union 44 plans to form a district with three towns, Sabattus, Litchfield and Wales, that are already sharing the same superintendent, Susan Hodgdon. In her proposed district there’ll be one budget and one teacher contract instead of four, Hodgdon said. Her proposed district’s student population would be 1,750, below the 2,500 minimum.

Hodgdon said the state consolidation law says the minimum is 1,200 students, so her plan meets that minimum.

Gendron said Friday that the law’s target minimum is 2,500, but school districts can be exempt in some cases, such as if they’re geographically isolated.

“The law says in order to be considered for less than 2,500, there’s other criteria they have to meet. Until I look at their notice of intent as to why they should approved for less, I can’t tell you if they meet it,” Gendron said.

She plans to respond to all 290 school districts consolidation plans by Sept. 14.

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