RUMFORD — The directors of Regional School Unit 10 voted 12-1 Monday night to charge $200 for each Dirigo Middle School student in Dixfield who wants to play football at Mountain Valley Middle School in Mexico.
Nine students from Dirigo want to play at Mountain Valley this year, Mountain Valley Middle School Principal Ryan Casey said.
Mountain Valley Middle School Athletic Director Dave Radcliffe said he spoke with Dirigo High School athletic directors recently and was told a boosters group from the high school would pay the costs “so that it doesn’t have to come from the children’s or parents’ pockets.”
The RSU 10 school board agreed to the fee for this year only.
In other business, the board authorized a $177,000 bond for school buses. Building, Grounds and Transportation Director Scott Holmes said that buses are eligible to be replaced and refunded through the Maine Department of Education, but they have to meet a certain standard.
“They have to be more than 10 years old and have more than 125,000 miles,” Holmes said. This year only one bus from the Nezinscot region met those requirements.
However, Holmes felt it was necessary to replenish the fleet with another bus for the Mountain Valley District in Rumford-Mexico.
“I’m down to four buses at the Mountain Valley Region and I’m grasping at straws right now,” he added.
In other news, the board approved attendance by the Mountain Valley High School fall sports teams at a Boston College football game and a tour of the school.
High school Athletic Director Al Cayer said the Gear Up program would cover the cost of the trip, if it included a tour of Boston College.
“It’s a great opportunity for our rural kids to see a big college football game and a great college campus in a great state,” Cayer said.
In new business, Kaitlyn Cote, a 2016 University of Farmington graduate, was hired as a Special Education teacher at Meroby Elementary School in Mexico. Cote is a graduate of Mountain Valley High School in Rumford.
mhutchinson@sunmediagroup.net
Mountain Valley High School in Rumford.
Seneca Jacobs of Buckfield Junior-Senior High School, attended Monday night’s meeting of the Regional School Unit 10 board as its student representative.
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