Ongoing Budget Worries Dampen Good News on Test Scores

North Kingstown School Superintendent Philip Auger laid the groundwork Tuesday for negotiations over next year’s contract with the Jamestown School Committee to educate students at North Kingstown High School, an arrangement that some in town feel does not benefit NK residents financially.

“Let’s not quibble about a relatively small amount of money,” Auger said. Jamestown pays North Kingstown about $2 million a year to educate its high school students. Charging part of the high school bond debt service to Jamestown — a share estimated by the town manager at $262,702 for 2011 — should not factor into the bargaining over tuition, Auger said.

North Kingstown owns the high school, and town residents enjoy unique benefits, such as reduced payments when they use the school for nonprofit events, Auger said. Jamestown students, he said, are more like tenants, not enjoying ownership rights and not responsible for the landlord’s capital expenses.

To bolster his view, Auger gave a brief slide show delineating the direct costs of educating this year’s 195 Jamestown high school students — $801,250 for extra teachers, books, supplies, etc. — and the additional amount paid by Jamestown to offset other costs, estimated at $1,440,460.

Auger’s position in favor of maintaining the arrangement that has been in existence since the 1970s, won support from several School Committee members. Committee member Melvoid Benson said she liked the landlord-tenant analogy, while colleague Joe Thompson said he has recently changed his view of the Jamestown agreement. While he still disapproves of the way the contract vote was handled in April, he said the result is “not an unbearable burden.”

Committee Chairwoman Kimberly Page said that because the School Committee never transferred any part of the Jamestown payments to the town for debt service, removing that consideration from the contract made sense.

In another wrinkle regarding the Jamestown contract, Auger reversed his Sept. 14 and said North Kingstown should not try to
factor estimates of future pension obligations into the bargaining for next
year’s agreement. No one knows what those pensions will require, or whether state or federal aid might help cover them, he pointed out. In light of that uncertainty, he said, negotiations should continue to use actual costs as the basis for setting fees.

Bill Mudge, who has raised objections to how the contract is negotiated for nearly a decade, said, "I disagree with Dr. Auger." Mudge asked for additional information on several points.

Committee Vice Chairman Richard Welch urged town residents to on Oct. 17 at 6 p.m. at Beechwood House, and provide their views on school funding.

Auger also invited the public to a public meeting at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 20 at the closed Davisville Elementary School to discuss the future of that property.

Amid debates over money, the committee heard some positive news. The 2011 NECAP Science tests showed that the percentage of North Kingstown 8^th grade students who demonstrated proficiency in science rose to 58 percent in 2011, a gain of 16 percentage points that placed them second in the state.

Auger attributed the gain to several factors that include having the science teachers meet regularly to plan the curriculum and share best practices, incorporating Gems-Net learning materials for more hands-on science experience, and writing more in science classes.   

NECAP scores for 4^th graders, however, fell a bit to 62 percent proficient, 9^th
in the state, and 11^th grade proficiency reached 30 percent, 15^th in the state. Auger said that at the high school, administrators and teachers are working to match what students are taught with when they take tests on those subjects.

In other business, the School Committee honored Diane Henault, a science teacher at Stony Lane Elementary School, who was named North Kingstown Teacher of the Year. Tina Bilodeau, who works at Hamilton Elementary School, received an award as Educational Support Professional of the Year.