9-Town News Article - February 2006
I hope that you and your families are well. As I write this note, I am surrounded by black balloons, a black crow facing me on my computer monitor, and all kinds of other “over-the-hill” paraphernalia. Yes, I have officially reached the 40 plateau, and friends and family have clearly decided not to let me slide quietly through the day!
Speaking of numbers, the school system is well into the throes of the budget season. After many meetings and lots of thoughtful input from school system stakeholders, the Mohawk, Hawlemont, and Rowe FY07 school district budgets have been completed and proposed to school committee. While the Hawlemont and Rowe budgets are somewhat uneventful, the Mohawk budget is quite the opposite. While Governor Romney’s proposed budget increases aid to the vast majority of school districts, it reduces aid to those districts experiencing declining enrollment, including Mohawk.
Without fundamental change, the Mohawk towns are facing double digit tax assessment increases for the foreseeable future. In my view, this equation is financially unsustainable. As a result, I am proposing changes to the regional agreement that would enable the school system to reduce its overhead so that the towns would be able to afford their schools. The Mohawk district is at a critical fork in the road, and the collective conversation simply must shift away from preserving the local elementary school toward preserving the quality of education for all Mohawk students.
Finally, because we may still run into bad winter weather before spring truly arrives, I would like to alert folks that our new mass voicemail communication system is not 100% full-proof. During its first year of operation, the system has demonstrated a 95% success rate. As a result, approximately 5% of intended recipients do not receive a school cancellation voice message from me. This failure rate is caused by pockets of poor telecommunications infrastructure in our area. So, if the weather is bad, and you have not received a message from me, please be sure to listen to the radio, check the television, or log onto our website www.mohawkschools.org before heading out the door.
As always, best to you and your families.
Michael Buoniconti
