Lisbon School Committee learns insurance rate may increase

LISBON — Superintendent Richard Green announced budget updates during the School Committee meeting this week, adding that the insurance rate may be going up.

The proposed budget is $15.67 million, an increase of 2.3 percent, or $352,746, from last year’s budget.

Green announced that the Maine Education Association Benefits Trust notified members of a 9.65 percent insurance rate as a maximum rate. Only 9 percent is budgeted for insurance.

The district will know its rate by April 7.

“If for some reason our rate comes back at 9.65 percent, there could be an increase there,” Green said.

There is $59,451 left in the gym and track accounts and $19,687 in the low-interest account for the guaranteed performance contract, Green said. The School Committee can decide to either put this money into a final transfer of bond funds or to add it to the unassigned fund balance, he said.

The committee also heard a presentation from Daniel Joseph, a consultant and professor at Saint Joseph’s College, on competency-based education solutions.

Joseph urged committee members to consider a standards-based learning curriculum.

“I’m finding that young people that have kids in school are very frustrated with Common Core,” committee member Gina Mason said. “They can’t figure out what their kids are learning.”

“The Common Core is a common language,” Joseph said. “It does not tell teachers how to teach.”

Joseph is working with school administrators to learn about the curriculum and is performing an audit to provide the district with recommendations on how to move forward with better learning techniques.