The Martha’s Vineyard regional high school district committee voted Monday to apply for a sixth time to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) grant program, embarking anew on a long-planned and long-stalled effort to renovate the ailing high school building.

The statement of interest to MSBA’s Core program weeks to secure funding to renovate and overhaul the high school building. The MSBA is a state program created to facilitate the funding of capital improvement projects in Massachusetts public schools.

Plans to renovate the regional high school facilities have been on the docket for years, with five previously failed attempts by the regional high school to gain entry into the MSBA funding program. The last rejection was in 2020.

At a high school committee meeting Monday, school business administrator Mark Friedman said the school hoped to submit a new statement of interest to the funding program before the application deadline Friday.

According to the MSBA schedule, the application would be considered this summer and fall, with final decisions by winter or spring of next year, Mr. Friedman said.

Superintendent schools Dr. Matthew D’Andrea said the MSBA had already expressed interested in the high school project. He said the school has been on a program “short list” for several years.

“I think that we need to do this, I would like to try to push forward,” Mr. D’Andrea Monday. “We have MSBA who was reaching out to us and saying, we want to help you. We have the towns saying if you can bring us a vision, we will consider it.”

In a familiar wrinkle though, Mr. D’Andrea said the MSBA will not consider the project without support from all six Island towns. The school has asked select boards to appoint representatives from each town to the project, with confirmation from four towns so far, he said.

But some committee members expressed concern about starting the process yet again without formal support from the town or concrete building designs yet in place.

“I think we need to understand a little bit more where we are in the visioning,” said committee member Amy Houghton. “I know that we don’t want to turn the money away from the state but I feel like we almost have the cart before the horse here.”

Mr. D’Andrea said the school has already begun planning the project with Tappé Architects, and hoped to review preliminary visioning plans at the end of the summer with a building committee, and later the school committee.

At the recommendation of the MSBA, Mr. D’Andrea said the school will hold a meeting after the initial visioning process that includes the state agency, the towns and the school committee.

“The MSBA has recommended this to us, and they’ve recommended it to us because they want to help us and they recognize the fact that we need a building project,” said Mr. D’Andrea.

Skeptical committee members remained unconvinced, echoing Ms. Houghton’s worries and raising doubts about the Island’s priority status on the MSBA program list.

“[It’s] a long short list because I heard that when I was chair, and I was chair four years ago,” said committee member Kris O’Brien.

Committee member Skipper Manter also cited dissatisfaction from the town of Oak Bluffs over the regional funding formula as a potential roadblock.

After an extended discussion, committee members voted 6-1 to move ahead with the application submission. Ms. O’Brien cast the sole nay vote.

In other business Monday, school committee members reviewed year-end financial reports, approving a slate of budget transfers.

Three non-union salary increases were approved that resulted in a $126,000 salary for assistant principal Jeremy Light, $76,184 for access coordinator Leslie Frizzell and $90,602 for transportation manager Marc Rivers.

Committee members also elected Ms. Houghton as the new chairman and Kelly McCracken as the vice chairman.