EUSTIS — A citizens committee has made a formal request to withdraw the town from SAD 58.

On Tuesday night, the Save Our School Committee’s petition, signed by 69 residents, asked the Board of Selectmen to formally start the process to create a stand-alone school.

For the past two years, Stratton Elementary School has been threatened with closure. According to Aug. 1 enrollment figures, 80 students plan to enter kindergarten through eighth grades. More than half of the children live in town. Another 30 percent travel from Carrabassett Valley, and 15 percent come from Coplin Plantation and Wyman Township.

Residents voted 186-5 in May to approve the 2012-13 school budget.

Director Sue Fotter, who was re-elected to the board in March for a three-year term, knows many of her supporters have grown short of patience with the lack of assurance that their school will stay open. She said the other school board members understand the reasons for the plans to withdraw from the district and that few Eustis residents will be surprised by the proposal.

“Every year, when the question comes up about the possibility of closing a school and that it may be Stratton, it’s like being told a family member is gravely ill and waiting to hear if you’re going to survive,” she said.

The exploratory committee has invested months of study and discussion to determine the feasibility of keeping the school open and educating the children outside the district. Its letter to selectmen and the general public says the SAD 58 administration has repeatedly stated that “the current budget level is simply not sustainable.”

Selectman Jane Wilkinson said, “By taking back control of our own elementary school, the town of Eustis is striving to eliminate some of the uncertainty that has plagued educational planning recently.”

During the exploratory process, Maine Commissioner of Education Steven Bowen and Superintendent Brenda Stevens have met with committee members, according to Jay Wyman, chairman of the Board of Selectmen.

On Wednesday, Stevens issued a brief comment on the situation.

“The residents of Eustis deserve our respect as they explore the educational options for its children,” she said. “MSAD 58 has a long history of collaborating with communities within the district as well as with our neighboring communities, especially when it involves the education of our children.”

There is every reason to believe the district will continue this kind of positive collaboration as it goes forward, she noted.

The public will be asked for input over the next several months, Wyman said.

“There will be several town votes as we go through the process,” he said. “When we get a plan in place, we’ll have legal counsel to make sure we have done things the right way.”

Wyman said selectmen will hold the first of several public informational hearings in mid-September, with a vote at a special town meeting to approve or reject the petition to withdraw.

Consultant Mark Eastman will help the committee move through the process if townspeople approve having selectmen appoint a formal school withdrawal committee. A final withdrawal agreement requires the committee to outline the conditions of the separation and explain how the students will be educated.

The agreement must provide a detailed timeline, which will take effect on June 30, the close of the current fiscal year. The committee must plan for a new superintendent, support staff, school board, budget and any plans to collaborate with other districts. The committee must address existing district contracts and debts, liability and all other insurance coverage.

Maine law also requires an agreement by the SAD 58 directors and the withdrawal committee before submission to the commissioner.

Finally, Eustis residents also must vote on the withdrawal agreement.

Wyman said the withdrawal committee will be meeting frequently, so residents interested in joining or observing the process can contact him through the town office.

“If we have anything that’s controversial, we’ll keep the public well informed,” Wyman said.

Until this year, Wyman noted, the town’s tax commitment has been higher than that of Avon, Kingfield, Phillips and Strong. Although Eustis’ tax base benefits from the Boralex biomass plant and Stratton Lumber, Wyman has little patience with complaints he hears from residents in other towns who say Eustis hasn’t been paying its fair share.

“For many years, we carried the lion’s share of the budget,” he said. “We didn’t like a lot of stuff, but we put up with it.”

Currently, Eustis’ tax rate is $9 per $1,000 of valuation, and the town’s school budget commitment is $826,560, compared to last year’s $907,044.

Although taxpayers will have to raise $80,484 less this fiscal year, Wyman said the issue isn’t about money and taxes. Residents want a guarantee that they can keep their school and allow high school students some choices, especially with the long distances they are required to travel each day.

“We’ve been very open about this, especially with all the school board members,” Wyman said. “Everybody on the school board knows about this.” Fotter and director Sarah Strunk “have gone to them, and they’re all kind of in favor of it.”

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