West Tisbury and Chilmark Selectmen Collide Over Up-Island School Study
Ian Fein

West Tisbury and Chilmark Selectmen Collide Over Up-Island School
Study

IAN FEIN

West Tisbury and Chilmark selectmen knocked heads this week over
whether a task force studying the Up-Island Regional School District
should consider closing the Chilmark School.

The dispute could end the task force study before it even begins,
and ultimately unravel the entire regional district, whose future is now
in question.

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Study Assesses Costs in Up-Island Schools
Ian Fein

Study Assesses Costs in Up-Island Schools

Long-Awaited Analysis of Finances for Regional District Concludes
Cost Allocation Formula Is Fair

IAN FEIN

The cost allocation formula for the Up-Island Regional School
District is substantially fair, according to a long-awaited independent
analysis released yesterday.

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Chilmark Faces Sharp Increase In Up Island District Budget
Jack Shea

The Up Island Regional School District budget for fiscal 2009 is slated to increase 1.9 per cent.

Still, enrollment swings and a new allocation system for building costs will have a large financial impact on two of the three Up-Island district towns if the budget is approved at town meetings.

The average cost per pupil under the proposed budget is $24,137, up from $21,143 last year, a 14 per cent increase. Enrollment dropped to 325 students from 357 a year ago, a decline of nine per cent.

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West Tisbury to Bear Brunt Of Higher School Bill Up-Island
Remy Tumin

With West Tisbury footing the majority of the bill, the up-Island Regional School District committee voted on Monday night to certify an $8.35 million budget for next year, a 2.1 per cent increase over last year.

Discussion centered on the possibility of a new kindergarten-first grade class at the Chilmark School and the resulting 4.53 per cent increase in West Tisbury’s $5.8 million assessment compared with a decrease in assessments for Aquinnah and Chilmark. Even without the additional class, West Tisbury’s assessment would still be up 3.99 per cent.

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News Update: Tuesday, Dec. 20 - Up-Island Schools Opt out of Chartwells, Will Make Own Food

The Up-Island Regional School District committee voted on Monday to part ways with food service provider Chartwells at the end of the school year and instead will opt for its own meals program based at the West Tisbury school.

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Up-Island District Unites to Silence West Tisbury Critics of Chilmark School
Remy Tumin

Rising tension over West Tisbury’s responsibility to pay the lion’s share of the Up-Island Regional School District budget led to sharp words at a district school committee meeting this week after the West Tisbury finance committee balked at paying for the school budget.

The finance committee took a preliminary vote last week not to recommend the school budget on the town meeting floor in April. The point of tension centers on the Chilmark School, where enrollment is increasing.

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Up-Island School Values

Up-Island School Values

The cost of operating the Chilmark School is on the table for discussion again — this time in West Tisbury, which will carry the heaviest burden this year for the up-Island Regional School District budget.

The added cost burden can be tracked to increased enrollment of West Tisbury students in the Chilmark School. The two schools serve the three up-Island towns of Aquinnah, Chilmark and West Tisbury, which are all members of the regional school district.

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Budget Increase Certified For Up-Island Schools

The Up-Island Regional School District committee Monday certified a fiscal year 2013 budget of almost $8.74 million, a 5.76 percent increase from the previous year, after a debate about how to fund plans for a renovated school kitchen and new school lunch program.

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