RSU 68 looking at near $250,000 budget increase

DOVER-FOXCROFT — RSU 68 officials are continuing work on the 2026-27 budget, a spending plan that currently is up by $246,444 with a 4.79% increase to local taxes.

The goal is to keep the increase at no more than 5%, Superintendent Stacy Shorey said during a Tuesday evening school board meeting at the SeDoMoCha School

In the current academic year the district received $8.3 million-plus from the state to go toward a total budget of $14,995,969. Local contributions for the four RSU 68 communities, Charleston, Dover-Foxcroft, Monson and Sebec, are determined by the Maine Department of Education in order for the district to receive its state funding. Local additional monies requested are set by RSU 68 officials.

The initial draft of the 2027 budget was up by $1.1 million and then around $900,000 in cuts were made, Shorey said.

A pair of elementary positions will not be filled, some ed tech jobs will be cut, fall B sports (boys and girls soccer and field hockey) will not be offered later in the year. RSU 68’s portion of the school resource officer position for the district and Foxcroft Academy will be covered by the department in 2026-27.

The remaining $200,000 not cut would come from the undesignated fund.

“It is not a long-term solution but it will definitely get us through this year,” Shorey said. The hope is the year after RSU 68 will benefit from a more favorable funding formula.

“No matter what we do, our revenue budget and expenditure budget have to be the same,” she said.

The district is still awaiting insurance costs, having built in a 10% increase but hoping the rise is not that high. Figures should be received in early April.

Shorey also said oil prices are not locked in due to a current fluctuating market.

In years past the finance committee has worked to bring a proposed budget to the full school board at its April meeting, with a vote by the directors coming in May. Later that month would be the annual district budget meeting, with the total spending plan approved then moved to a referendum the second Tuesday of June for final approval in Charleston, Dover-Foxcroft, Monson and Sebec.

In other business, SeDoMoCha Principal Cameron Archer updated the board on several topics.

SeDoMoCha Elementary earned bronze medal honors in WinterKids’ Winter Games, a statewide outdoor learning challenge that engaged 104 schools and 10,687 students across the state. As the bronze medalist, the school received $1,500.

The WinterKids Winter Games are a four-week winter competition held annually, designed to help schools integrate movement, learning, and wellness into the school day. This year’s Winter Games ran from Jan. 12 through Feb. 6 and centered on the theme HEART, focused on caring for our hearts and for each other, both physically and emotionally. HEART health and following your HEART guided students’ outdoor learning as schools moved through WinterKids’ four classic weekly themes: Physical Activity, Nutrition, Family and Winter Carnival, all supported by the Winter Games Playbook.

Participation in the Winter Games was free for all Maine schools. Each participating school received a toolkit with weekly incentives that complimented their daily activities, and a Winter Games Playbook for every child, offering activity instructions, reflection prompts, and connections that extended learning beyond the classroom.

An assembly was held the Wednesday before February vacation to recognize the students and staff for their efforts in the 2026 Winter Games.

“It was a fun four weeks for our kids,” Archer said.

With March 14 falling on a Saturday, the annual Pi Day will be held on Wednesday, March 11. Middle schoolers compete to see who can recite the most digits of the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter, with those earning top honors getting the privilege of throwing a pie at the face of a selected staff member.

Archer said he hopes he is not chosen this year, but the assembly is still one of his favorites.

Unified basketball and wrestling seasons are underway, and this year the Eagle wrestling program was able to join the Pine Tree League to be able to compete with teams across Maine.

Spring sports sign-up forms have gone out and paperwork is coming back for athletes looking to participate in baseball, softball and track.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Dr. Nirav Shah, former director for the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, recently toured SeDoMoCha, Archer said. Student council members led the tour. 

On his way out Dr Shah told Archer the students are in good hands, and the principal credited staff.

Board Chair Jenny Chase, who is Rowell’s Garage transportation director, presented on school bus safety with several drivers sitting in the audience.

About 775 students are transported to and from school each day across RSU 68, Chase said.

“Imagine inviting 60-plus students into your living room, pre-K to grade 12 each day,” she said about bus drivers having this many pupils on their vehicle for each run. The drivers need to know details about each of their passengers, such as their health and IEP needs and who can or cannot meet them at the stops, 

“Your living room is not moving down the road,” Chase said to emphasise the challenges of driving a school bus.

A critical concern drivers face are motorists passing a stopped bus with its red lights on. Bus cameras can catch many offenders and help lead to convictions. 

Safe driving habits can prevent most accidents, Chase said as “action is faster than reaction.”

She said transportation staff are fortunate to have the RSU 68 and Foxcroft Academy administrators in place. “They always treat us as partners,” Chase said.

“Thank you on behalf of the teachers, administrators and stakeholders, thank you for keeping our students safe,” Archer said.