St. John Valley school districts are accepting site requests for a new PreK-12 school that may be built to house students from the Madawaska and Frenchville regions if they vote to merge later this year.
The districts are also planning a public meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 26, to talk about revisions to the reorganization plan, in which residents can provide feedback.
The new school opportunity arose after the Maine Department of Education approved the funding to rebuild Dr. Levesque Elementary School, which was destroyed by a fire in 2021. Dr. Levesque is part of MSAD 33, which serves Frenchville and St. Agatha.
It was just one of two school projects approved in Maine last year, with the other being Dike Newell Elementary School in Bath, which was set on fire by an arsonist. The new school may also be one of the last in Maine to receive full state funding.
This isn’t the first time the region has looked at building a new school. MSAD 33, the Madawaska School Department and Fort Kent’s SAD 27 explored creating a shared school under the banner “Valley Unified” in 2015. But the project died after six years of planning due to disagreements with Fort Kent about the site location and cost sharing.
The next step for making the new school a reality will be a November referendum that will ask voters whether they want Madawaska to merge with MSAD 33. If accepted, the school will move on and be tailored to serve students in both districts’ communities. If rejected, the project will move forward solely for MSAD 33.
If the project itself is then approved by voters, they could vote either to go with the basic construction covered by the state or adopt a plan that goes beyond this design.
Now, officials from both districts are asking for suggestions from landowners in the region willing to sell 30 acres to accommodate the project. Requests are due by Sept. 7.
Architects and engineers will lead a site selection process alongside a subcommittee of stakeholders in the districts’ towns.
“The process will involve a matrix that scores potential sites on criteria such as acreage and buildable area, access to utilities and infrastructure, traffic and pedestrian safety, environmental considerations, and overall accessibility for the communities we serve,” said Ben Sirois, superintendent of both the MSAD 33 and Madawaska.
The group will then recommend a site to the full board of officials from both districts.
“We’re committed to a transparent, community-centered process that ensures the best long-term outcome for students across all three towns,” Sirois said.