Voters in West Tisbury made themselves heard loud and clear at the ballot box last month when they rejected a request to override the state tax cap for school spending.

Now comes the hard work for the up-Island regional school district committee, which must cut West Tisbury’s share of the budget by some three hundred thousand dollars in advance of a special town meeting slated for June 2. With most of their ten-million-dollar-plus budget tied up by contractual obligations for salaries, up-Island school leaders struggled this week to find consensus on where to reduce spending, but by week’s end appeared to be closing in on a plan.

There may be very good justification for the fact that school spending has outpaced other local government spending for several years, but that message has not been delivered with any clarity. The West Tisbury finance committee, which voted 5-0 not to recommend the override, was caustic on town meeting floor about the inadequacy of the school committee’s presentation of its plans.

And though up-Island school committee member Jeffrey (Skipper) Manter 3rd, long known as a fiscal watchdog in the schools, is correctly reading voters’ frustration, his quick move this week to suggest his town withdraw from the up-Island regional school district is wrongheaded.

Wearing a different hat (as a selectman), Mr. Manter placed an article on the upcoming special town meeting warrant asking voters to agree to separate from the school district that includes Chilmark and Aquinnah.

First, the move is procedurally cumbersome, requiring the other two towns to agree or forcing a second vote in six months. More substantively, breaking up the regional school district that has served the three up-Island towns since 1993 would be a step backward, not forward; a study done a few years ago showed that it would cost the town more to operate on its own.

Most critically, the move has the effect of throwing up dust at a moment when what is most needed is clarity on a complicated issue that involves taxpayers, educators and, importantly, the children our schools exist to educate. What are the key drivers of escalating school costs? How much of what is spent is mandated by state and federal programs and how much can be locally controlled? Are there further cost efficiencies to be found by keeping rather than breaking up a three-town collaboration?

Ironically, Mr. Manter’s move to have his town withdraw from the regional school district comes just as outgoing superintendent Dr. James H. Weiss has begun a tour in Island towns to preach the virtues of cooperation among schools, for both educational and financial reasons.

Much like the Island itself, Vineyard public schools are in the throes of change amid population growth and shifting demographic trends. In another month there will be new leadership as Mr. Weiss retires and Matthew D’Andrea steps in to take his place.

As superintendent, Mr. D’Andrea will have an opportunity to set a new agenda, including not just how the Island invests in education, but how it justifies that investment. If recent events in West Tisbury are a bellwether, there is no better time than now.