Mascoma school district budget gets warm reception at deliberative session

WEST CANAAN — About 40 voters in the Mascoma Valley Regional School District appeared largely receptive to the proposed $27.7 million school budget at the deliberative session Saturday morning.

The spending plan for the five-town district amounts to a 1.7 percent — or nearly $460,900 — increase over the current school year. The warrant also includes a new contract for support staff that would add about $66,000 in spending.

“It was a pretty uneventful morning,” said school board member Tim Josephson. “There was no discussion about the budget or about proposed increases to the support staff.”

The School Board used the deliberations to announce plans for a Strategic Planning Committee to be formed this spring. The ad hoc committee would include administrators, a School Board member, parents and students and will focus on long-term goals for the district, Josephson said.

“People often say a school district should be run like a business, and (long-term planning) is something businesses do all the time,” said Josephson, who added that specifics such as the committee’s number of members hasn’t yet been determined.

Ballot voting will take place on Tuesday, March 12, in Canaan, Enfield, Dorchester, Grafton and Orange.