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May and early June brought several new reorganization plan and alternative plan approvals, including: MSAD 16 (Hallowell)/Richmond/Monmouth/ Dresden , Falmouth/MSAD 51 ( Cumberland ), Litchfield/Sabattus/Wales (Union 44/Oak Hill CSD) and MSAD 53 ( Pittsfield )/MSAD 59 (Madison). Also, MSAD 75 (Topsham) was approved for its proposed alternative plan as well as MSAD 52 (Turner) and Isle au Haut.
With these new plans, there are almost 49,000 students – one quarter of the public school students in the state – in proposed school units that have been approved. Of the 20 plans approved, five are reorganization plans and 15 are alternative plans.
So far only one reorganization plan – the one that includes Bath , West Bath , Arrowsic, Phippsburg and Woolwich – is operational. The other four plans require voter approval before implementation July 1, 2009. Two plans - the one that includes MSAD 16, Richmond , Monmouth and Dresden and the one including MSADs 53 and 59 – will both go to the voters today, Tuesday, June 10. The others will be put to the voters later, most likely in the fall.
View the status of all plans and the commissioner's responses.
Revised Law Summary Now Online
We have posted a revised summary of the Reorganization Law , reflecting the changes made by LD 2323 (Public Law 2007, Chapter 668) and including information about the alternative organizational structure.
Also online: if you received this email from a friend, be sure to sign up for reorganization updates .
Focus Groups: Talking about education
By Mary Jane McCalmon
The facilitators education planning subcommittee, led by Mary Jane McCalmon, has been holding focus group sessions with superintendents, curriculum coordinators, principals, teachers, special education directors, career and technical education directors, school board members, parents, and reorganization planning committee members. They are asking about ways to help prospective regional school units (RSUs) find ways to bring unity and coherence to the multiple approaches and philosophies in the member school systems, should they request that assistance. The end product will be a collection of strategies, tools and recommendations that units may use as they see appropriate, and to adapt to their own unique situations.
The advisory group is comprised of Jake Clockedile, Bob Kautz, Norm Higgins, all former superintendents.
Examples of some the questions they have been asking stakeholders:
- If you were preparing for the operation of a new RSU, what planning work would need to be done in the area of the educational programs of the separate systems in order to bring them together as one cohesive program?
- How would you use this opportunity to develop programs and learning opportunities that are an improvement upon what currently exists?
- What things exist in the educational realm that we need to be sure to address that are not being addressed currently? What things are just on the radar screen that need to be addressed? What things are not on the radar screen that should be there?
- How do we build relationships among the separate staffs so that they come together as a unit?
- What tools/processes/organizations do you know that should be available to assist with this work?
The group's goals are to come up with a set of strategies and specific tools (such as templates, guidelines or training), and to identify the resources that will be needed by proposed RSUs to tackle this work. The tools and strategies will be available to reorganizing units who wish to use them.
The group will complete the focus group meetings this month and plans to make recommendations to the Commissioner in July.
Mary Jane McCalmon is a former superintendent and currently a facilitator for the Department of Education.
Purchasing Portal: “Reverse e-bay” is saving districts big bucks
By Terry Despres and Colleen Akerman
The GetBestBid electronic bidding portal has completed a four-year Development Project, which demonstrated through a six-month pilot significant savings for the participating districts. MSAD 36 began work on the concept in 2004. In 2005 an online bidding portal (GetBestBid.com) was introduced.
Essentially the portal allows schools to enter bids for products that vendors use a reverse auction process that promotes the best price. For example, if a school district needs 50 flat screen computers, they may log on and place it out to bid to a vendor base that is currently in excess of 800 vendors. School districts include precise speculations, delivery information, and a target purchase date.
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The vendors bid on the posted item, unaware of the price their competitors offer. School districts price the competitors' offers. The vendors are notified through the web-based system as to the status of their bid (leading/lagging). A bidder may re-enter their bid if they find that they are lagging through the bidding time-line closure. The buyer is able to observe all bid activity. This process has substantially reduced the costs for items in school purchases for the participating pilot schools.
Schools have saved on average 10 percent on laptops, 13 percent on ink cartridges, 24 percent on furniture and equipment and 53 percent on cleaning supplies.
With the cost-savings as the impetus, MSAD 36 initiated the development of a Procurement Service Center . This center is an attempt to reduce costs and demonstrate efficiency required by the reorganization law. The savings can assist districts aiming to reduce facilities and maintenance costs in particular, to meet the requirements in the reorganization law, as well as costs for instructional materials and other supplies across the budget spectrum. The host district (MSAD 36) is developing 11 regional centers statewide. MSAD 36 (Livermore, Livermore Falls ) will act in the role of vendor developer, offering training services for public schools, and working with the 11 centers. The centers serve as the bidding agent to allow small schools to act as large schools with purchasing through volume. The final decision for accepting and placing purchases remains local, protecting their control for decisions.
With the purchase of GetBestBid by Tyler Technologies, Inc. (ADS/MUNIS), a Maine based company with offices in Bangor and Falmouth Maine providing for the accounting needs of over 75% of Maine schools, a user friendly system has evolved. As a web-based portal, easy utilization is evident for seller/buyer activity. The vendor reaction has produced interesting results with many Maine businesses reporting an awareness of business that they were not engaged in before. All vendors in a given category receive e-mail notice of bid requests thereby alerting them of a potential sale. This has proven to be a positive outcome for Maine businesses.
A major benefit of a web-based technology such as GetBestBid is that it transcends geographical space, and allows for access by districts to a large vendor competitive atmosphere. The end result as demonstrated by the pilot period is lower pricing for materials needed to operate Maine schools.
The portal system owned by Tyler Technologies, Inc. and operated through Procurement Centers of Public Schools does not create another layer of management since the centers operate out of current district central offices. The net result is efficiency by regional support.
A district may join the GetBestBid system by contacting MSAD 36 through Colleen Akerman (Director of Purchasing/Technology Director) at 207-897-6722 ext. 104 or through email, cakerman@sad36.org . The contact will provide information and your district will be placed with a local center.
Terry Despres is superintendent of MSAD 36 and can be reached at tdespres@sad36.org . Colleen Akerman is director of purchasing/technology director at MSAD 36 and can be reached at cakerman@sad36.org or 207-897-6722, ext. 104.
The Q&A page of the website has been updated with these and more questions.
Q: How do the changes to the reorganization law affect the adult education budget process?
A: They don't. Please see Administrative Letter # 38: http://www.maine.gov/tools/whatsnew/index.php?topic=edu_letters&id=55011&v=article
Q: How long can an alternative organizational structure take to achieve consistent contracts within the new unit?
A: The law gives the RPC the opportunity to present a proposal. The transition should be long enough to provide the transition member units seek, but not unreasonably long.
Q: Is a regional school unit (RSU) of 1,000 to 1,200 students eligible to propose an alternative organizational structure?
A: Yes, provided it meets the criteria for a rural isolated community as defined in that section of the law.
More Questions and Answers .
Statewide routing software in the works: state-paid tool will save districts thousands
By Rick Soules, Transportation Specialist for the Maine Department of Education
The Maine Department of Education is seeking a comprehensive pupil transportation routing management software system. Currently an RFP is published with an expected award date of June 30, 2008 that seeks to assist school units in managing their pupil transportation systems. The Department will pay the full cost of this software, which will be made available free-of-charge to all school units in the state.
The expectation is that a routing software system will improve the efficiencies of routes and equipment utilization and help reduce fuel consumption. Districts that have done this on their own have seen significant savings. MSAD 47 ( Belgrade , Oakland , Sidney ) has cut its bus routes by 80,000 miles annually out of 400,000 total route miles. In addition to generating over $40,000 in fuel savings annually, the elimination of four routes is also leading to long-term savings in labor, maintenance and equipment purchases.
As fuel and equipment costs rise, so do transportation budgets. Very often transportation costs are seen as a necessary evil but without this expense an education would be out of reach for many young people. This routing software RFP will more clearly identify options that school units have to provide the appropriate transportation services. Policy changes such as walking distances, bell times, stop locations can all be played out with actual student data to see the impact those changes will have on the budget and on the student.
Information will be gathered from year to year that can be used to much more accurately budget future years and the software will tie into the student management system to ensure the most current student data is being used. As Maine schools move toward more efficiencies it makes sense that the transportation systems move in the same direction.
Ri ck Soules, transportation specialist for the Department, was formerly the transportation director for Scarborough Schools. He can be reached at richard.j.soules@maine.gov or 207-624-6884.
RSU Start-up guide: We've been approved…now what?
By Bob Kautz, former superintendent DOE facilitator
The reorganization plan has been approved by the voters at referendum. What must happen next? How much work will there be to have the new regional school unit (RSU) ready to function as a school unit on July 1, 2009? What follows is not intended to be a complete listing of items needed to be accomplished, but is intended to assist in helping new RSU boards to begin to understand and better plan the scope of the work that lies before them.
When the plan has been adopted by the voters and certified by the State Board of Education, the school boards of the units forming the new RSU must meet to set an election date for the new RSU board. This activity will involve selecting a secretary, printing ballots, warrant postings and all other needs to conduct an election.
Once the initial RSU board has been elected, it will have much to do. The Legislature recently amended the reorganization law and in that amendment (LD 2323) was included a section that addresses the transitional powers and duties of an initial RSU board and states that the costs for these start up activities are to be allocated to the school administrative units by the cost sharing formula established in the reorganization plan.
The selection of a superintendent will be among the first actions the RSU board should take. Along with this will be the determination of the location of an office, salary and other expenses and, possibly, moving costs. The other important activity will be the preparation and approval of the budget for the new RSU for the 2009-2010 fiscal year. In addition to these two important items, the initial RSU board is authorized to take all other actions provided under state law to prepare the regional school unit to become operational on July 1, 2009, the first operational year.
Among these activities will be the making of the arrangements for the necessary insurance policies, workers compensation and unemployment plans, health insurance, audit services, bonding and errors and omissions policies, as well as professional liability policies. Some of these will require formal bid procedures.
Some items that are financial and business-related include the establishment of a relationship with a bank, the setting up of accounts, obtaining checks, establishing payroll relationships, and selecting a financial and personnel software system that will address MEDMS requirements. Also new sales tax exemption, fuel tax exemption, and tax identification numbers, as well as a federal communications number for radios, and state retirement number all will need to be obtained. A new social security plan will be needed as well as arranging for new Tax Sheltered Annuities and 125 plans. Arrangements for state licenses for elevators, boilers, kitchens, etc. will need to be made. Additionally the RSU board will need to examine all contracts for services to select those that should be transferred to the RSU, those that should be ended, and also determine what new services should be contracted.
A student information system will need to be in place for the beginning of the school year. Policies for the new unit, as well as interim policies for the transition period, will need to be approved by the RSU board. Vacancies of staff will have to be filled. A selection of a firm for legal services will need to be made. This will need to be done as soon as possible as advice on tax anticipation notes, bid specifications, budget warrants, personnel and other contracts, and policies are some of the items that may need legal review. Also, as an example of mandated appointments, the RSU board will need to appoint AHERA, Affirmative Action, and Attendance Officers, as well as a school physician.
The RSU Board and Superintendent will have much to do and will have limited time to do the work. This will all begin immediately after the plan vote, State Board certification, and RSU school board election, and need to be completed before July 1, 2009. As RPCs develop the plan they might want to keep this scope of work in mind and appropriately schedule their work to complete the plan and have the approval referendum.
State facilitators have created a list that will be published on the reorganization website that provides more detail on RSU start-up work and in the coming days we will also provide you with examples of transition budgets. You can find this information at: http://www.maine.gov/education/reorg/planning.html . We hope that this information will help as you begin this important task of having an RSU start and be successful from the first day and beyond. As was mentioned earlier, this is not intended as a complete list, but is intended to help you as you begin the work. Consultation with your legal services provider is advised. If the facilitators can be of further assistance, please feel free to contact the Reorganization Team at the Department of Education, 624-6802, or the facilitator assisting your RPC.
Bob Kautz is a former superintendent of Sanford Schools and a DOE facilitator. He can be reached at: rkautz@maine.rr.com or 207-351-5073.
Reorganization Team Contacts
Melissa Padgett, Administrative Assistant
Jennifer Pooler, Coordinator
Ray Poulin, Project Manager
Norm Higgins, Project Manager
All four can be reached at 207-624-6802
Jim Rier, Director of School Finance,
207-624-6794
David Connerty-Marin, Director of Communications ,
207-624-6880