RSU 29 Looks at Cutting 9 Jobs; Impacts to Music, Phys Ed, French

HOULTON, Maine (WAGM) – RSU 29, which includes Houlton, Hammond, Littleton and Monticello, is looking at cutting 9 positions for the 2024/2025 year.

Last year the district cut 17 positions to save roughly 1.2 million dollars. In total, this means 26 positions will have been cut from the district in the last two years. Even with these cuts, the budget still reflects a 4.51% increase from last year.

Some of the proposed cuts will impact programs such as music, physical education, French and athletics, among others.

In a public letter from RSU 29 Superintendent Joseph Fagnant, he states some of the causes for these cuts include valuations going up, enrollment trending down, and the mill rate set by the state being lowered.

A School Board meeting to discuss the budget was held in Houlton Monday night, a Public Budget Information Session is being tuesday night, and a District Budget Meeting, where the budget is approved by registered voters, will be held on May 14.

In Superintendent Fagnant’s letter he states: “The budget decision is now in the hands of our Community voters who have to make a difficult decision as to how much the towns can support the schools.”

WAGM will have more on RSU 29 and other district budgets on a future edition of NewsSource 8.

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