SAD 41 annual budget meeting set for May 12

MILO — The SAD 41 annual budget meeting for the 2026-27 academic year finances will be at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 12 at the Penquis Valley School, a 5:30 p.m. information session will take place prior.

The dates were set during an April 1 school board meeting at Penquis Valley, along with a referendum date of Tuesday, June 9 for the residents of Brownville, Milo and Lagrange to vote on the budget approved on May 12. 

“We really need to get the word out,” Superintendent Darcie Fournier said, with the public encouraged to come and ask questions on May 12 so consistent information can be shared.

“It was a challenging year, we had some challenging decisions to get here,” she said.

The 2026-27 budget is about $383,000 more than the approximate $11.5 million for the current school year.

Last August the approximate $11.5 million budget for 2025-26 was approved by a single vote at 151-150 across the three communities. 

The budget was approved 55-54 in Brownville, voted down 18-12 in Lagrange and passed 84-78 in Milo as SAD 41 residents headed to the polls for the second time last summer to make a decision on 2025-26 finances.

In June district citizens had voted down a proposed $11,907,487 budget for 2025-26 by a combined 219-118 count.

In other business, Penquis Valley Principal Danielle Libbey mentioned several items in her report. 

Last month the Penquis Valley Key Club had an outstanding Empty Bowls Night, Libbey said, as handcrafted ceramic bowls were used to serve a meal and attendees could take the dishware home afterwards.

“They raised about $1,900 which they have donated for local food insecurity,” she said.

The fourth annual event was held at the Three Rivers Kiwanis Building and all tickets were sold.

“The community is still talking about what a great event that has become now,” Board Chair Mary Lynn Kazyaka said.

The Key Club recently picked up a number of awards at the Key Club District Educational Conference

“They put in more than 1,300 hours of volunteer work this year, that’s amazing,” Kazyaka said.

“Spring sports are underway, I walked by softball practice on the way here,” Libbey said.

Later in the meeting this season’s coaches were appointed: baseball, Brett Crocker; softball, Hazen Conlogue; track, Sasha Bladen with Mason Canon assisting; middle school baseball, Corey Sabine; and middle school softball, Chelsea Richards.

In his report Brownville Elementary Principal Joshua Bessey said the school is continuing a partnership with the Piscataquis County Soil & Water Conservation District.

Fourth-graders are hatching trout eggs to be released later in the spring. PCSWCD Executive Director Kacey Weber comes in to teach and work with students on conservation and the environment. A related bulletin board teaches about ecosystems.

Area Masons are working with the school on Bikes for Books again in 2026, Bessey said.

“This is a good quality program to promote reading,” he said.

For each title students reach from April 1-16 they can put an entry into a drawing for a new bicycle provided by the Masons, with a pair of boys and girls grade-level winners to be chosen for the prize.

At the start of the meeting Kazyaka welcomed new board member Jeffery Coates of Brownville.