FARMINGTON — Several residents addressed Regional School Board 9 directors Tuesday about budgetary, bullying and procedural issues they felt required attention.

Tiffany Estabrook of Chesterville noted several recent meetings in which public notice was not given.

“On Nov. 7 I was here at Mt. Blue High School for a different reason. There was a policy committee meeting being held that had been rescheduled. There was no notice to the public of the meeting change. The last notice for the meeting was on the Oct. 23 agenda for Oct. 30, not for Nov. 7,” Estabrook said.

There was also no public notice of a workshop prior to the board meeting, she said.

Bob Millay of Chesterville said, “It was reported there was a $230,000 overdraft in the budget. I want to know what is being done to investigate that.”

In September, Finance and Personnel Committee Chairman Irving Faunce reported an estimated $230,000 in unbudgeted expenditures. The committee was charged with developing and implementing a transparent budget and expenditure reporting process, Faunce said at the time.

Also, according to Millay, the district bullying policy is not in compliance with state standards.

“I want to make sure there are reports about these issues in the future,” Millay said.

Nancy Porter of Farmington said, “It has come to our attention this district has spent $8,000 in attorney fees and there is no report of that. You do understand that we are the public and we will continue to monitor your overspending.”

Board Chairman Cherieanne Harrison thanked those who spoke.

“We will look into those issues,” she said. “Just to remind everyone, the best way to get answers is to present questions ahead of time so we can get them to who we need to get them to.”

“At what point in the future can the public expect a report?” Millay asked.

Harrison said, “Some of the topics have been discussed and presented. We will definitely look into things and as they are researched or as they come up naturally we will be discussing them at board meetings.”

In other matters, Superintendent Tina Meserve reviewed the process for snow day delays and cancellation decisions. Meserve said she considers a recommendation from a meteorologist and consults superintendents of surrounding districts before making a decision.

“It’s a thorough process that starts at 4:30 in the morning. The challenge with the meteorologist is that he does not know what the road crews are dealing with,” Meserve said.

She said if parents are uncomfortable with road conditions, they can make a judgment call and keep their children home.

dmenear@thefranklinjournal.com