The major cost (about 75 percent) of operating any school system is the salaries paid to staff: administrators, teachers, ed techs, coaches, custodians, bus drivers and cafeteria workers. Monmouth schools have traditionally run a relatively inexpensive system by having administrators perform multiple jobs.

This administrative multi-tasking will cease under the new regional school unit. The salaries that are being paid to our administrators will remain as they are, but Monmouth taxpayers will be asked to support a new layer of administration (many of whom will come from the present Hall-Dale SAD 16 system).

Monmouth presently does not have separate individuals in the following positions: an assistant superintendent/curriculum coordinator, an administrative assistant to the superintendent, an assistant to that administrative assistant, a business manager, an assistant business manager, a building and grounds director, an assistant building and grounds director, a food services director, an assistant food services director, a transportation director, and an information technology and communications director. If Monmouth does have these positions they are combined with other responsibilities.

These new positions will be filled by people whose salaries will be paid by the taxpayers in the five towns of our school unit. However, there is no way that Monmouth taxpayers can support these new positions without increased taxes or a reduction in education services provided to our students.

A major goal of the RSU law was to reduce administrative costs and this is not happening in Monmouth’s RSU.

Douglas Ludewig, Monmouth

Member, Monmouth Board of Selectmen