LINCOLN, Maine — Regional School Unit 67 will try for a third time to get a budget passed.
The district’s proposed budget of $12,267,722 was shot down by voters on Tuesday in Lincoln, Mattawamkeag and Chester by a count of 326-190.
“We have kids starting school here in about a month and we don’t have a budget in place,” said Superintendent Denise Hamlin. “We have a finance committee meeting scheduled for Monday.”
The budget on Tuesday’s ballot was the same one that was voted down by residents the first time, on June 12, according the Hamlin.
She speculated that the biggest reason the budget didn’t pass was that the amount wasn’t written on the ballot.
“All three communities have mentioned the fact that the dollar amount wasn’t [on the ballot itself],” Hamlin said Thursday. “The budget was supposed to be in the booths, but it wasn’t there. People don’t like to vote on a budget that they don’t know how much it is they’re voting for.”
The budget on the ballot gave the district everything it needed to run its programs, she said.
“We have a lot of services that other schools have let go. Let’s hope that we can keep those programs for kids because that’s what we’re here for,” said Hamlin, who mentioned the district’s computer-aided design program, advanced preparatory classes, shop, life skills and two foreign language classes.
She said the district will go back to find ways to lower the budget and bring it back before the voters.
The finance meeting on Monday will set the budget timeline.
“The towns have asked us to get it completed as soon as we can because of their revenue. It creates a revenue shortfall for them if we can’t get their tax bills out,” said Hamlin.
A school board meeting is planned for Aug. 8. The board will have a budget workshop at 6 p.m. with the regular meeting at 7 p.m. A question-and-answer session will be held afterward. Hamlin encouraged residents of the three towns to attend.
“What’s unfortunate is when people have questions about the budget, they wait [until after the budget goes to the ballot],” said Hamlin. “If they have questions about a line, funding source or revenue, it becomes a lot of misinformation.”
Hamlin encouraged people with questions about the budget to come talk to her about it.
“The budget was supposed to be in the booths, but it wasn’t there.” Do you live in the district Mrs Superintendent? How do you know it wasn’t there. I voted in Lincoln and it was right there in the booth. You have no idea what you are talking about. PUT THE AMOUNT ON THE BALLOTS. I believe you were asked to do that after the first vote. Don’t accuse someone else of not doing their job because you can’t do yours!!!!!!
She does not live in the district. She does get a $9000 travel expense though. Would love to see those receipts. And, when I see teachers leaving school at 5 or 6pm but am told that she is seen back in her hometown at 330 walking with her husband I have to wonder if the wrong people got the raises.
“The budget on the ballot gave the district everything it needed to run its programs, she said.”
Evidently not as you cut a math position at the Junior High last week.
And the amount was there. I voted and saw it, as did others. You know full well why the budget didn’t pass. It is because no one trusts you or the school board members that are protecting you. You have been caught in too many lies. When a citizen stands up at a board meeting and asks specifically if the Sped Director is certified and you take the microphone (while being taped) and said that she is certified, knowing full well that she isn’t, you should not expect people to trust you. Meanwhile, the “conditionally” certified Sped Director sat there and didn’t say a thing, as did her mother (who just happens to be the chairwoman for the board). The uncertified Sped Director gets a $5000 raise (as do all the admins, except for the Super, who got $8000) and the Super gets another huge stipend to oversee the “conditionally” qualified Sped Director. You have quite a racket going on there, Ms. Superintendent. A 5 year contract, in the midst of lawsuits, and a salary of $105,000. The school board should be ashamed of themselves, and recalled.
I’d suggest Tar and Feathers, but that would be politically incorrect and would just get my post flagged…….so I won’t suggest that.
I think that it’s time for a vote of “No Confidence” for the superintendent and the board of directors!!
Will someone please buy this lady a dictionary so she can look up the word “NO”.
I am beginning to believe that both the super and the Board have a comprehension problem.
$9,000 for travel? I would think it is high time this woman was brought up short. That is taxpayer money she is taking and in my humble opinion, excessively.
Not to mention a stipend for overseeing a replacement that she forced upon the district. Something smells funny to me.
“What’s unfortunate is when people have questions about the budget, they wait [until after the budget goes to the ballot],” said Hamlin. “If they have questions about a line, funding source or revenue, it becomes a lot of misinformation.”…Is she sending a clone to the meetings? Is she wearing ear plugs? Hasn’t this town spent HOURS asking questions? She ended with people coming to meet with her for an explanation….we’ve seen how well one on one meetings with her go!!!! “The budget on Tuesday’s ballot was the same one that was voted down by residents the first time, on June 12, according the Hamlin.” WHAT??? The first ballot had raises for the teachers, which Chair Thurlow wrote not only to the Lincoln News but also USED the school website as a medium to encourage voters to turn this budget down…which we did! The second budget NO raises for the teacher and Thurlow recommeded that we accept this budget….which we did not! If it was the exact same then she is contradicting herself in what she is telling people. I submit, that’s because it was a different budget. Either way, the point really is, we don’t trust the information given us.
I went to a school board meeting. At that time 3 or 4 people kept getting up and asking the same redundant questions. If we want the budget changed, we should be at the budget workshops when the budget is being formed. It didn’t seem like it was the proper time in the middle of July.
It is insane to me that people are using this budget to show their emotions. I keep hearing”it’s not about money it’s about trust”. Umm, budgets are in fact about money.
I believe that the district should be run by the will of what the people in the community want. I hear and read a lot of what everyone is mad about, but I don’t see anyone suggesting anything reasonable to make this situation better.
“I believe that the district should be run by the will of what the people in the community want. ”
That is why we have a vote. The community has spoken twice. The real problem is, the community didn’t say what the superintendent and school board wanted to hear. As a result, we just keep going in circles because they keep presenting the same budget that was developed by the board to begin with. If the community didn’t like the budget the first 2 times, they probably aren’t going to like it a third time. Does the board think the community will just get tired of voting and finally just agree? Fact is, the finance committee only met 4 times in an entire year to develop a 12 million dollar budget. I don’t think the early morning coffee get-togethers count, do they? Of course, when you don’t want people to know that you are getting together, I suppose that is the way to go. Could you start video taping those for us? And could you let Trask know whether or not he is meeting so that he can get his story straight? Very underhanded. If the public only knew. If the public only knew.
So let’s hear some facts that the public needs to know. Let’s see the budget you DO want. Everyone knows so much about what the board SHOULD be doing, yet no one has their act together enough to get on the ballot and run themselves. I respect most of the people who are speaking out against this very much as individuals, but collectively this is more drama than effective budgeting.
I have just given you a lot of facts, read up above. Most of the rest of the information cannot be made public right now due to the second lawsuit that is coming up. I won’t jeopardize that. People are going to be shocked at things this “leader” has had to say behind closed doors. Hang on, we are in for a good ride. The community needs to keep rejecting her budgets until she is gone. Stick together RSU 67, your voices will be heard eventually!
The point I want to make is, “rejecting her budgets until she is gone” is irresponsible. We need a budget. If the lawsuits are so legit (maybe they are) they will take care of her performance problems, if there are any.
Why do we need to pass a budget? There must be plenty of money somewhere. She’s still hiring extra administrators and passing out $5000 raises to each of them. Where is that money coming from? When the new assistant principal was hired for the elementary school, I believe the board accepted her “pending budget approval”. That was a waste of breath. Sadly, passing or rejecting the budget is the only say the community has. SAD 67 folks need to recall that board. All but a couple of them are brainwashed, including the minister and sheriff. They are supposed to be role models. Who do you think they serve, the kids of the community, or the superintendent? Choose this day whom you will serve.
Yes, the minister and the sheriff are the worst. . . .I think they like those morning coffee breaks. . .and maybe the attention??
Hopefully the lawsuits will move quickly and we can hire someone with ethics!!!
Absolutely. , … everyone needs to band together!!!
You want to know what the board should be doing? They should be financially responsible AND STOP DOLING OUT RAISES HAND OVER FIST TO THE ADMINISTRATION! We don’t have a budget but yet we are handing out $5000 raises, which seems to be the going raise, to the admin team and the turn around and cut a math program at the jr. High???? A program which obviously seemed to be working and very beneficial to the students since that was the only school out of the three that was meeting/exceeding state standards. Mrs. Hamlin stated, “We have a lot of services that other schools have let go. Let’s hope that we can keep those programs for kids because that’s what we’re here for,” So you’re worried about programs being cut if this budget doesn’t pass but yet your continue to make sure ALL admin are taken care of????
What a mess! We need a superintendent that has experience. . I’d say her lack of experience is making RSU 67 an embassassment. It used to be the best school in the area. . . .now it’s a laughingstock. .. . .thank you Chairwoman of the board for that!!
Teachers are getting a $600 raise… and are the 4th lowest in the State. Earlier article in BDN states that RSU 67 got the most from State subsidy to get beginning teachers up to the state requirement.. .all other school districts did this when they were supposed to. . . even Machias only took $10.50 from the State while Lincoln took $31,000. Administrators are some of the highest paid in the State. .. People are voting the budget down because there have been up to $150,000 in administrative raises, 3-year contracts and newly created administive positions that all seem unnecessary. If we don’t have money, we don’t have money. . don’t flaunt excessive raises and huge administrator salaries for new employees that don’t have experience in our face. This is NOT fiscally responsible!!!
If the teachers up there spend half as much time teaching as they do attacking the school board and superintendent maybe they wouldn’t have had 2 of 3 schools failing? Glad my kids aren’t in the Lincoln schools.
Since your kids aren’t in the Lincoln schools, how would you know how much time is spent teaching.. oh wait, it’s summer vacation, this is THEIR time to use as they chose. MOST of which are spending time (unpaid) preparing their classrooms for next year. NOW if you were to say “if only the superintendent would stop stalking the staff on facebook and inviting people into her office for 3 hours meetings of reprimand and she stopped micromanaging the schools, then she could do the jobs set forth in her job description.” But since she is too busy earning stipends by hiring people unqualified for their jobs and she has to do the paperwork for them, then I guess we all know who REALLY isn’t doing her job!
As a former scool board member(not 67), it is in my opinion, important if not critical that the faculty voice their discontent and concerns in whatever avenue is left to them. From reading this on going story and chatting with several school employees, it seems that the only course left available to them is to go the route of publicly speaking out. The real shame here is that they have been placed in fear of losing their jobs and possibly their hard earned ritirements, not to mention their investment in the school many of these people have staffed for decades if they should dare stand up in a school board meeting and say what they feel. What remains to them is to do so behind screen names that mask their names, but does not mask their very real concerns.
It is my impression and opinion, that this super has created a hostile work enviroment that the students will be paying the price for in the years to come. How do you justify cutting the actual hands on teaching staff and in the next breath give the administration across the board pay raises? The plain truth is that they can’t be justified in any logical or sound manner.
The voters of RSU#67 have spoken, not once but twice. If it truely is the purpose of the Board of Directors to insure the best education possible for our children while at the same time hearing the wishes, concerns and needs of the citizens they serve, They have failed miserably.
They are not the sole persons to blame for this fiasco though. The blame has to also be placed at the feet of the voters that either through apathy or ignorance allowed them into office in the first place.
In my time serving, I took a stand where my heart told me was right, not what the school admistration wanted, or the other board members that had family and friends working for the district. I may not have been re-elected when my term expired, but I can hold my head high in the knowlege that during my tenure, I gave 110% of my time, effort and thought into the job I accepted.
Good for you. Yes, the board and the superintendent have ear plugs in. How many times do we say we can’t stand for this unethical behavior and yet they come to meetings and smile and joke right in front of everyone and do exactly what the public is asking them not to. The superintendent is giving administators 3 year contracts so she won’t lose her support. Because if they go, she probably knows she’ll be going to. The public has given the board and super enough chances. . . they have done so much damage that it will be years before the district will ever be good again. Another example, is the Careton project. The person running it, gets $70,000 a year and has 6 – 10 kids and now they’ve hired him an assistant. Is this really necessary?? How about putting that math position at the junior high back in?? I first of all blame this mess on the Chairman of the Board because she worked so hard to get her daughter a cushy position she signed with the devil.
You sound very uninformed. Teachers want to teach. .. they don’t want to cut teaching positions to add more administrative positions with super high salaries. If the people doing the jobs, can’t do them. . get rid of them. . .don’t give them an assistant. Specifically, the principal at elementary and the director of special services. . .also daughter of the school board chair. Hire people that can do their jobs!
Teachers may want to teach but what are the results?