FARMINGTON — Regional School Unit 9 voters approved a proposed $35.5 million budget Tuesday at Mt. Blue Campus that will go to voters for a validation referendum May 15 in the district’s 10 towns.

The budget is $1.91 million more than this fiscal year, which ends June 30. That’s a 5.68 percent increase.

There about 363 registered voters, Superintendent  Tom Ward said just after 7 p.m.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for y0ur support,”he said.

He spoke about trying the district trying to recover from the recession, his five years as superintendent, trying to make salaries for employees competible, and the need to show students what is like to be appropriate

“We’re all in this together. We are all trying to protect our future. Our future is in our children, ” Ward said.

“The pendulum has swung too far.  It has to come back, Ward said. We need to show our kids what it is like to  be appropriate.” 

Ward received a standing ovation when he is finished. He is retiring on June 30.

Ward also thanked Chairwoman Jennifer Zweig-Hebert of Starks who is not seeking re-election.

Ronald Aseltine of Wilton was elected moderator.

An attempt to amend the $10.83 million regular instruction article failed.

Pathway for All Learners program cost is $461,603 in this budget proposal. Eight students from kindergarten through grade two, and eight students for third grade through fifth. 

The cost of the program is $461,603 and though the bulk of the cost of it is in regular instruction, parts of it were in other articles. The goal of the program is to allow behaviorally challenged students to develop the behavioral and social readiness skills to eventually participate fully in general education classrooms.

There is no need to spend this amount of money because kids are misbehaving in class, a Chesterville resident said. 

It really impacts the all of the classrooms for kindergarten through fifth grade students, Director of Angela LeClair said. 

“More and more students are coming to us unable to regulate their own emotions,” Paine said.

The proposed special education article for $5.53 million passed. So did the career and technical education article for $1.94 million.

Voters moved quickly through the rest of the articles passing them all.

dperry@sunmediagroup.net

Polling hours for RSU 9 validation vote on May 15

Chesterville: Noon to 8 p.m., Town Office

Farmington: Noon to 7 p.m., Community Center

Industry: 2 to 8 p.m., Town Office

New Sharon: Noon to 7 p.m., Town Office

New Vineyard: 1 to 7 p.m., Smith Hall

Starks: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Community Center

Temple: 1 to 7 p.m., Town Hall

Vienna: 2 to 8 p.m., Fire Station

Weld: 4 to 8 p.m., Town Office

Wilton: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., Town Office

Regional School Unit 9 voters raised green cards to vote yes to approve a budget article on Tuesday at Mt. Blue Campus in Farmington. The proposed $35.54 million budget will go to a yes-or-no vote May 15 in each of the 10 district towns. (Donna M. Perry/Sun Journal)