Dear Editor:

An article in the online Register on Tuesday, July 5 contains, among other things, incorrect statements about student test scores at Boothbay Region High School.

The article quotes a Shawn McBrearity from the conservative Maine First project as saying that, according to the Maine Department of Education (MDOE) 65% of the students at BRHS were “below or well below state average.” Not true.

In the first place, There is no such overall measure. Students are tested statewide in math and English language and science. The tests measure expected proficiency in these subjects. In the English language and math tests for 2018 and 2019, our students were at or above state proficiency levels in both subjects. These two scores are the ones usually used to measure school and student performance. For anyone interested in the actual performance data, it is available online on the MDOE website. 

We actively encourage public participation at all of our meetings and there are policies for teaching controversial issues which allow for even more direct input in your child's education. If you need assistance in navigating the DOE website or about the data on the website, please contact a member of the school board.

You can contact me at 207-449-4251 for further information.

Mr. McBrearity’s speech was full of additional incorrect and inflammatory statements about public schools, which in a rhetorical attempt to make you think they are not your public schools, he says are run by some distant “government.” Well, that “government” is just all of us in our two communities, plus our elected state representatives. We pay our state and local taxes to support the schools, and democratically elect the school committee and trustees locally to oversee the work of our teachers and administrators.

Bottom line, our students at BRHS are doing well compared to state averages, and are getting into a variety of colleges and other post-secondary institutions and occupations.

Bruce MacDonald

Vice Chair

Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor CSD