What is an area agreement and why is Dunbarton School Board discussing this topic?
An area agreement is a legal contract one town has with another school district or districts to enable students from one town to attend middle and high school in another town in a long-term relationship. Because Dunbarton does not have its own middle and high school, the town has a 10-year agreement with Goffstown and New Boston to tuition their students to the Mountain View Middle School for 7th and 8th grade and Goffstown High School for 9th-12th grade. Our current agreement expires in 2014. Two-years out from the deadline of this 10-year agreement, it is normal for both school districts to review the agreement and decide if each town finds it in their best interest to renew and continue the relationship.
During the 2011-2012, the Dunbarton School Board is responsible for evaluating our options for educating our middle and high school students. The Board must put before the voters at the 2012 School District meeting in March a recommendation either to continue with the area agreement for another 10 years or more or to dissolve the agreement and find another town to develop a relationship to tuition our students.
Dunbarton, New Boston, and Goffstown have been in a three-school district area agreement for many years. The three towns also comprise School Administrative Unit (SAU) #19. The SAU handles all of the administrative tasks associated with curriculum, payroll, human resources, procuring commodities, policies, teachers, calendars, budgets, and special education through the Superintendent and two assistant Superintendents. SAU #19 is financed 100 percent by the three towns and is accountable to the SAU #19 Board, which is composed of members of school boards from all three towns.
As part of the process of due diligence, the Dunbarton School Board will be holding its first public meeting to evaluate what qualities the town is looking for in a middle school and high school and to start a conversation about where we will send our students in 2014. The conversation will also have to consider Dunbarton’s participation in the SAU #19 partnership, so the next few months will bring many questions.
Submitted by the Dunbarton School Board
Rene Ouellet, Chair
Carl Metzger, Vice Chair
Deb Foster
Deb Trottier