A little over a year since its charter was replaced, the Community School District (CSD) Board of Trustees is seeking clarity on the document. Nov. 18, the board created a subcommittee to help definethe board's responsibilities and powersalongside the CSD School Committee. 

“The charter talks about doing, say, the budget, but it talks about it in collaboration with the CSD (School Committee). But it doesn't explain what that means,” Alternative Organizational Structure 98 Superintendent Robert Kahler told the Register. "If the trustees approve their portion of the budget, does the CSD (School Committee) have to approve that as well?Those kinds of things, because the language in the charter is very broad.” 

The board has discussed defining its role in previous meetings, but the subcommittee, made up of Ronnie Campbell, Sewall Maddocks and Darrell Gudroe, was created after a discussion on transportation, a topic the trustees have discussed, but which may not be under their purview.   

“If we're not supposed to be talking about buses, we’ve wasted hours on talking about buses,” Gudroe said. He later added, “I believe the task we are putting in front of us is to correct the charter.” 

The CSD charter was replacedlast year after Boothbay and Boothbay Harbor requested changes, according to Kahler. It was reviewed and approved by both boards and enacted by the state. Many of the changes aligned the CSD with state law, which handles mostly single-board school districts. Kahler said he is not aware of another two-board district in the state, and the subject has come up with both boards.

“When you look at the charter language itself, even the way itsets up, the trustees are responsible for all aspects of the school except for hiring teachers, salary, educational programming. It'sjust weird language the way it's written because it basically reads as (the trustees are) responsible for everything except everything,” Kahler said. 

Trustee Paul Roberts said if he asksthe superintendent or an attorney what the board’s legal responsibility is, “nobody can tell us.” He added the charter states dutiesin collaboration with the school committee, making delineations unclear. Roberts said he is mostly interested in the boards coming to an agreement over what the agreement becomes. “That's what has to happen. Otherwise, there is fishy stuff all the time, there's unclarity and there's no understanding about who's responsible for all this stuff. And that's not a good way to do things especially considering the atmosphere lately.”  

Trustees agreed their subcommittee will meet and report back to the parent board before coordinating with the school committee. Trustees discussed identifying potential charter changes as well as language thatidentifies core responsibilities.Maddockssaid he also wanted to see forward thinking on the trustees' vision for the community and the school. “That's my idea for what trustees do. They oversee the vision and make sure the kids are first,” he said.    

In other business, the trustees asked for a report on the district’s enrollment and tuition income.According to Kahler, the state sets rates for tuition, the district’s largest source of income. However, he said there are somespecial agreements between superintendents or for children of staff, where students are not charged.

In addition, Kahler told the Register a hearing has been scheduled on Dec. 16 for the lawsuit around the Boothbay Region Elementary School renovation project referendum in April. He said he expects both sides will present their case but does not anticipate a court decision on that date.