POLAND – A proposal to lay off as many as 24 people from schools in Poland, Minot and Mechanic Falls persists despite nearly a $500,000 boost in state aid.

Superintendent Dennis Duquette said Monday that his plan, which would include eliminating 10 teaching positions, restructures the new consolidated school department for new demands and lower enrollments.

Not certain

The layoffs, which would begin this summer, are not certain. Before the positions are cut, the new School Committee would need to accept the plan.

“That’s a lot (of layoffs),” committee Chairman David Griffiths said. “We’re going to have to give some thought to the plan.”

Duquette released parts of his restructuring proposal in early March, before the state released aid figures.

Though he declined to name the people who would be affected, Duquette said jobs would be lost at each of the district schools.

The district had been bracing for a decline in aid when the new numbers were released Thursday.

“We went into the budget very conservatively,” Duquette said.

No new taxes

Besides a gloomy forecast for state aid, the district pledged to keep its tax levy in all three towns from rising. The schools have lost about 150 students in recent years, Duquette said.

And changes will come with the new school unit.

Minot, Poland and Mechanic Falls had been loosely connected by a school union. Beginning July 1, they will share all costs. Such high-priced budget items as transportation – with bus routes that can now cross town lines – are expected to save money.

Savings like that were at the heart of the state’s push to consolidate school systems, Griffiths said.

When it meets on April 6, the School Committee will measure Duquette’s plan and the state aid numbers.

“I think it’s more money than any of us expected,” Griffiths said.

The money may be used to improve school buildings throughout the three towns. The new school unit has yet to build up any savings, and lack of maintenance can lead to costly fixes, he said.

“We have a responsibility to maintain the buildings that the public has entrusted with us,” Griffiths said.

The school board is scheduled to approve a budget April 28.

However the money may be spent, school officials plan to stick “absolutely and totally” to their pledge of no new taxes, Griffiths said.

“Taxes will not go up,” he said.