The RSU #78 Board of Education met in person on Tuesday, July 12, 2022. There were technical difficulties which resulted in the livestream not being available, however meeting minutes will be posted to the school website later in August.

By unanimous vote Mary Richards of Sandy River Plantation will continue as Board Chair, and Deb Ladd of Rangeley will continue as Vice-Chair.

Heidi Deery shared information regarding the September 6th start date for the 2022/2023 school year and how it will impact students who attend Foster Tech and students who take online college classes. Both programs begin before September 6th. After much discussion, Mary Richards asked the administration to share what support will be in place for students and the impact on staff at the next board meeting.

School Librarian Abby Thompson spoke about her presentation and participation at the Maine Association of School Libraries (MASL) Spring Symposium on Saturday, May 14, 2022. Her presentation was “Get the Word Out: Advocacy Through Newsletters”. Abby has since been asked to serve on the MASL Board at the state level and will attend the annual board workshop on August 10, 2022 at the Maine State Library in Augusta.

Abby also presented a “year in review” of the library and discussed goals for 2022-2023, which include more classroom collaborations and genrefying the fiction collection.

Board Chair Mary Richards welcomed new members: Amber Frost-Gray (Sandy River Plt) and Danielle Lemay (Rangeley). The RSU #78 board workshop is Friday, August 19, 2022, 1-4pm. Agenda will include a presentation from Maine School Management Association (MSMA) on legal responsibilities of board members, student testing data review from the prior year, and goal setting for the coming school year.

Superintendent Georgia Campbell shared that first grade teacher Rebecca Ellis safely delivered her son, George Emmett Ellis on June 29, 2022 and warmly welcomed the newest member of RLRS. We all wish Mrs. Ellis and family the very best and look forward to her return.

In June Georgia Campbell attended both the School Safety Summit at Windham High School and the Commissioners Conference in Bar Harbor, ME. Both events were well attended and provided intensive learning and networking opportunities. Georgia Campbell has also been selected as one of 25 female superintendents in the state to attend a women’s leadership conference. She will update the board as that program gets underway.

Principal Seth Laliberte was not in attendance tonight, but shared via an email that summer work has begun in earnest and he is hard at work on handbooks and will soon be digging into the spring state testing data. He will have a data overview ready for the August board meeting.

There was one new appointment: Kevin Banfield for varsity golf coach and bus driver.

With a unanimous vote, the Board approved the request for an overnight trip for middle school to Tanglewood 4-H camp. The Board also approved a one year contract for an administrative position that would report to the Student Services Team. This position is being added based on feedback from guidance counselor applicants. Based on the current financial condition of the school, RSU #78 has funding to cover this position without impacting the 2022/2023 budget.

The meeting adjourned at 7:58PM. The Board will meet again on Tuesday, August 9 at 6:00PM in the Multi-Purpose Room at the Rangeley Lakes Regional School.

Comments are not available on this story.