School has started across SAD 41

By Stuart Hedstrom 
Staff Writer

    MILO — With students having returned during the week before Labor Day, SAD 41 officials met for the first time since the new school year of classes began with a school board meeting on Sept. 2.

    “Everything seems to be getting off to a great start at Penquis,” Penquis Valley School Principal Jeremy Bousquet said. He said an open house has been held for sixth-graders and their families, and a “whole building open house” is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 23 with the community also welcome to see happenings at the grade 6-12 school.
    Board member Stacie Martin, the parent of a Penquis Valley High School student, praised Bousquet for enabling the school schedules to be released before the start of classes. The principal then thanked guidance staff members Pam Smith, Laura Mallett and Amber Gahagan for all their efforts in the scheduling process.
    Superintendent Michael Wright said during the July meeting Micah Grant, who was principal for a short time before resigning to take an administrative position closer to his home, mentioned how the Penquis schedules were nearly complete at that time. Wright said if Grant had stayed he most likely would have run into the same issues with setting up classes that were encountered by administrators after his departure.
    School board Chair Don Crossman wondered if the schedule-making process could start earlier, and Bousquet replied, “It will start earlier.” He added, “It’s a process in which we will start building and gathering in February.”
    In other business, the school board voted to formally hire Joanna Charles as the Carleton Project teacher. Wright said the previous teacher resigned on short notice and then Charles interviewed, was offered the position the same day, took part in training the day after and began the job on the next day.
    “I’m very excited for the opportunity, I have a lot to learn,” Charles said.
    The Carleton Project, which is an alternative high school, is in its second year in SAD 41. The program is now housed at the Penquis Valley complex after being located at the Marion C. Cook School in LaGrange, which was turned back to the town of LaGrange after a referendum vote in June to shutter the building.
    Wright said representatives from Stephen Blatt Architects in Portland have toured Penquis Valley to begin their work on a feasibility study of the complex. “Each of the consultants is preparing their initial findings in draft form for review,” he said.
    The next step in the process is for the consultants to meet together before combining findings to present to SAD 41 officials. Wright said the feasibility study will propose what should be done with the school, costs for making improvements and whether these upgrades are worth doing on the over four-and-a-half decades-old building.
    “We would look to convene a meeting of the capital improvement committee as soon as that’s available,” Wright said.
    During the public comment portion of the meeting, elementary music teacher Jack Eastman mentioned the benefits of having the pre-kindergarten program being housed at Milo Elementary. The offering for the youngest students in the district moved to Milo Elementary School last school year, and now these pupils are in kindergarten.
    “We haven’t taken a step forward, we have taken a leap forward,” Eastman said. “That pre-K really prepared kids for kindergarten,” as the students are familiar with the routine, rules and more of attending school.
    “I would second his comments as well of having that in place and the value in the school,” Milo Elementary Principal Nathan Dyer said during his report.
    “We are doing well,” board member Arthur Herbest said about pre-K and other programs. “The realignment is paying off both for the district and the students. It’s a win-win.”
    At the start of the meeting Crossman welcomed Alyson Ade, who now is on the school board as a Milo representative.
    Ade said after she and her husband spoke about some concerns they had at the July meeting, Penquis Valley Assistant Principal William Vigue called and spoke with her. “I just want to say ‘thank you’ to him for reaching out to us,” she said, also thanking Bousquet.