MILLINOCKET, Maine — The Millinocket School Committee’s new chairman, Kevin Gregory, wants to have a clear-the-air meeting with the Town Council over school finances, he said Friday.
Town Manager Eugene Conlogue was polling council members on Friday to see whether they could attend a school board meeting at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 17, at Stearns High School. In an email to councilors sent Thursday, Conlogue said the meeting would concern “property taxes and Sudden and Severe Impact funds” — money state government typically gives municipalities as compensation for drastic property tax losses.
But Gregory said he hopes the scope of the conversation will be much wider.
“We want to talk about everything — our budget [now], our process coming up. It’s not just about that,” Gregory said Friday, referring to the disposition of the state funds. “I want to be able to get along with them. We have to have communication. If we don’t have that, we are just going to be barking at one another. Both boards want what’s best for our children and our townspeople.”
“As long as we do it respectfully, I will allow discussion back and forth. If there is going to be name-calling, I am going to end it,” Gregory added.
Council members have expressed concerns most recently about the sudden resignation of school board Chairman Arnold Hopkins on Dec. 21 and the conditions under which it occurred.
Hopkins had most recently made the news by saying school leaders had instituted a spending freeze in anticipation of a predicted $140,000 to $150,000 shortfall caused partly by the school system’s failure to meet its goals for tuition-paying Chinese students at Stearns High School.
School board members reportedly were upset that Hopkins spoke about his estimates without permission from others on his board. Board members also questioned whether the schools should have received about $150,000 in Sudden and Severe Impact money rather than town government. Millinocket received the money because of the devaluation of the town paper mill over the past year.
School board members want to know “where the money belongs,” Gregory said. At the Jan. 17 meeting, the board might also discuss Hopkins’ replacement, whom the Town Council is supposed to name, but Gregory said it’s not an issue he plans to raise personally.
Gregory was named Hopkins’ replacement last week, with board members voting also to name Michael Jewers the board’s vice chairman, Gregory said.
Both boards have struggled with shrinking budgets and state and federal aid, declining school enrollments and the region’s economic struggles over the last several years. Under the town charter, the school board directs school policy and the council allocates funding to schools through the board.
Interesting, I guess the school comm. members should proposed a gag order. They were his esitmates, unless I missed it; I did not see any counter estimates? Maybe the amount was closer to fact.
The amt wasn’t near the truth because they all still believe even after being told otherwise by the State there is NO S&S money for either town.
I believe he mainly was talking about the shortage on the Chinese student program.
Millinocket hasn’t received the sudden and severe money. Last I heard it was hung up in the treasury because the state doesn’t have the funds to cover it. I have yet to figure out how something that was voted down by the legislature ended up a done deal on a hand shake in a hall way.
When these 2 towns, both included it in their budgets, don’t receive it they are going to be hard pressed to continue on the road they are on. It’s do or die time. Time to put on their big boy undies on and deal with it. The cuts should have been made a long time ago.
Yup , time to make the cuts !
wish you are partially wrong. One there is no s&s money for either town. East did not put the s&s money in the budget that the town voted on. However, the selectman in their drunken stupor stole the amt. of the s&s money from the school budget after that vote. And told the school they could have the s&s money when it came in. Which at that point they were 90% sure it was NOT coming. And NOW the same selectman is planning on giving the town crew ( aka the coffee breakers, lunch breakers, coffee breakers time to go home ) and the rest of the town employees a raise!
Failure of a questionable Chinese budgetary bail out to materialize, in conjunction with dwindling state and Federal aid are only symptoms of communities in economic free fall without bungee cords. However given the certainty with which so many vocal opponents of new sources of economic activity (NP) have ratified the status quo the financial meltdown is nothing that can’t be managed. The cargo cultist-snowmobile -paper mill- mentality will never say die.
What a wonderful comment, your choice of words in this and some of your other comments are simply astounding! The intelligences is overwhelming, you truly are the hero of the Katahdin region!!
Just happy to help.
I don’t think they need your “help”!
what they need is to deal in reality. Not pipe dreams or fantasy land.
Arnold was speaking poorly of and investigating the superintendent, too bad no one did that before they hired him. Others on the board didn’t like that, they don’t want it to come out that they never, really, looked into this guy before hiring him. They got a list from the state of who had the credentials to be a superintendent and took that as a recommendation.
They called his old office crew and they were so happy to get rid of him they said ” yea take him take him..” and the school board lacked the wherewithall to understand the sarcasm!
It’s time you leave us Roxanne !
Neither will the mentality thinking hundreds of thousands of people are going to drive in droves to a 61,000 acre Federal Park at the end of the road. How does that song go, “Give me 40 acres and I’ll turn this thing around”
Its really dispiriting to watch so many people unable to see beyond the end of their own nose. Or to think of a cascading increase in value realized for the benefit of succeeding generations by these efforts to augment this NP proposal.. “Its no park for me. ” Me Me Me being the ultimate justification for any action in this life. Very sad.
The same can be said true of those that insist on a National Park. I just do not happen to agree with it, and that is my right; just as it is yours to want want. As far as the me, if you want to state it correctly it is ME, (Maine), ME (Maine), ME, MAine. I see though that you are correct in once assumption which is RESTORE’s vision “augment.” We are well aware of their augmentation going into New York. Yes, it is very sad, that people in the area do not want to give lands and rights over to the Fedreal Government. Very sad indeed.
First of all I’d like to know if Gregory had the permission of the school board to invite members of the council to the meeting.( remember Hopkins resigned for speaking without permission of the board of which Gregory is part). Judging by the quotes attributed to Gregory it’s clear that he has the final say , or thinks he has. Secondly , the state money is clearly intended for the towns use , the school board is still expected to set a reasonable budget. Cuts must be made. Perhaps it’s time to close the old building on Granite Street ! Perhaps it’s time to cut some extra programs. Let’s get to the basics of educating our children ! Sorry to see Mr. Hopkins gone !
there are 2 different figures being thrown around, 1 set for the town side of the budget the other the school side. I would suggest if the money is intended for the school side that is where it goes. If there is an increase in the amount earmarked for the school shouldn’t it go there and not to the town side of the budget?
The School Board Members and the superintend should resign after the beating they give Arnold Hopkins, they embarrassed, humiliated him to the end. Mr Hopkins knew the budget and knew it well. Kevin Gregory and Don Dow befriended Arnold and through him under the bus. Now Gregory is chairman and wants to clear the air. The scool system and the school board is a mess in Millinocket and we got these clowns to fix it. Half of the senior class is failing and they are worried about money. The people tried to tell them about the chinese program, but Gregory,Dow, and Jewers and Smith would not listen. They spend money and don’t even know where it goes and this has been going on for some time. Its time for the Towns People to stand and tell them what to do. One more thing, Dow also resigned the same night Mr. Hopkins did as Arnold took his letter of resignation at the meeting, but Dow is still on the Board.
And the new Chairman seems to be confused one day he’s leaving too. and the next he’s the new chairman!
We lost a good man because of these crooks on the school board
Sooner or later they will be held accountable for the mismanagement that has become the norm
I miss Arnold , hope the rest are held accountable sooner than later ! By the way , the water still sucks !
yeah, your right…
The fact that Kevin is still looking for the sudden and severe money shows the lack of knowledge, blind leading the blind, that has plagued this school board for … How exactly long was Tommy on there??? Yea face it … you have no money for the second semester. But, don’t worry about graduation when your teachers stop getting paychecks they’ll stop showing up so the 8 to 10 you got passin’ now will be sol!