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Last week was a big one for schools across Maine.

Cape Elizabeth, on its third try, passed an $86.5 million plan to rebuild and renovate its aging middle and elementary schools. Other communities, like the Franklin County towns in MSAD 58, sent a different message at the polls. And not only did they reject the school budget, some of them are pushing to leave the district altogether. 

In her latest story on the issue, Kristian Moravec digs into the way schools are organized in Maine, which has a school administrative unit for every 650 or so students — a structure one study called "Administrationland." Her reporting found that the state's 2007 effort to consolidate rural school districts is unravelling, as more than 40 towns have chosen to withdraw since then.

It's a fight over money, yes, but also local control. In some rural communities, buildings are falling apart, enrollment is declining — and yet, residents can't picture their towns without a school. Read Kristian's piece to see how the debate is playing out so far, and what towns should keep in mind as they weigh their options. 

Plus: why the national fight over public lands matters in Maine, what new foster care data says about the state's child welfare policies, and more.

— Stephanie

Across Maine, towns continue to grapple with school district reorganization

Gov. John Baldacci's 2007 consolidation bill aimed to condense Maine's 290 school systems into 80 districts as a way of saving money and improving education. The initiative was met with strong pushback, with many worrying towns could lose their local schools and would have less of a say in school governance.

Since that effort, and the policies in place to enforce it lapsed, 42 towns have chosen to withdraw from their school districts, following a 22-step process set by the state. And more are hoping to join the ranks.

Read this story by Kristian Moravec

New federal data shows Maine’s foster care population grew at the fastest rate in the nation: OFCS Director Bobbi Johnson cited the agency’s response to high profile child deaths in 2017 and 2018, as well as a lack of attorneys to represent parents and a dearth of support services, as reasons for the increase. Read this story by Josh Keefe

What the public lands fight means for Maine: “It’s hard for me to understand how gutting ‘America’s best idea’ isn’t America’s worst idea,” said Sen. Angus King. Read this story by Chris D'Angelo

Embden rejects proposal to explore leaving school district: The measure to formally start the process of withdrawing from Regional School Unit 74 in Somerset County failed after months of tense debate over the issue. Read this story by Kristian Moravec

June 'radio hour' explores Maine's changing workforce: Reporters Kristian Moravec and Rose Lundy talk through their recent reporting on shifts to Maine's workforce, in both clean energy and health care. Listen to the episode

A ‘concerned’ Mainer’s tip got an immigrant wrongly detained for 65 days

Border agents in Calais arrested the Venezuelan man who was allowed to be in the U.S., prompting a strongly worded decision from a federal judge this week.

Read this story by Callie Ferguson of Maine Focus

Note: this story appears on The Maine Monitor's website as part of our collaboration with Maine Focus, the investigative team of the Bangor Daily News. Read more about the partnership.

Have feedback or a correction to send to Stephanie McFeeters? Send it to her directly via email: stephanie@themainemonitor.org. 

Know of a story that we should be digging into? Send it to our newsroom. 

The Maine Monitor is a publication of the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, an independent and nonpartisan nonprofit news organization. We believe news is a public good and keep our news free to access. We have no paywall and do not charge for our newsletters. If you value the reporting we do for Maine, please consider making a donation! We cannot do this reporting without your support.

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