The Wiscasset Withdrawal Committee will ask the town's selectmen to appoint an ad-hoc committee to look into future plans for the Wiscasset School system.

The Withdrawal Committee informed the members of the public at their Aug. 2 their job is to only provide a plan for Wiscasset’s withdrawal from RSU 12.

The Wiscasset Withdrawal Committee was appointed by the selectmen following the June 12 vote accepting the petition to withdraw from the school district.

According to Withdrawal Committee member Jason Downing, although the committee has taken steps to look into the options available for Wiscasset, it is not the Withdrawal Committee’s responsibility to come up with the alternative to the current system. “We are responsible to negotiate a withdrawal agreement with the RSU, and submit that agreement with the commissioner of education, including the cost to withdraw,” Downing said.

This information did not sit well with Wiscasset resident Richard Grondin, or other members of the public at the meeting, because over the past few months voters have been told that before a final vote to withdraw the voters would know the cost of withdrawing and what a new school system would cost the voters.

“I am disappointed to hear (the committee) not having a plan ready when we are asked to withdraw,” Grondin said. “We have been told that the Withdrawal Committee would have the total cost of withdrawing ready when we voted the second time to withdraw. Perhaps (the committee) does not have a legal responsibility, but you certainly have a moral responsibility. I certainly will not vote to withdraw when I don’t know what the cost will be.”

Withdrawal Committee Chairman Mary Myers told Grondin this is the reason the Withdrawal Committee is asking for an ad-hoc committee to work on the future plans for Wiscasset so that it can be presented at the same time as the vote to withdraw. It is also the reason they are asking for legal advice as to exactly what their role is.

Under the state law governing school district withdrawal, Wiscasset will need a voter turnout of more than 823 residents for the withdrawal vote to count. The law requires 50 percent of the voters in the last gubernatorial election to vote in a withdrawal vote. There were 1,665 voters in the 2010 gubernatorial election.

“If the vote fails, we will not be able to withdraw for two years,” Dowing pointed out.

The committee went over the elements for the withdrawal agreement, dividing the 11 elements among the four committee members to complete.

Downing reported that members of the committee had met with Boothbay Region's AOS 98 Superintendent Eileen King, and were told should Wiscasset join AOS 98, the cost would be about 32 percent of the their administrative budget. Withdrawal Committee members also met with AOS 93.

Committee member Jefferson Slack, expressed frustration about getting the information needed from the RSU 12 central office. Slack was requesting the cost of operating the three Wiscasset Schools.

According to RSU 12 Superintendent Alan Hawkins, the information was not available because all communications were down during the move of the central office from Whitefield to Somerville.

“It is my understanding there is a quick need for the information,” Hawkins wrote in an email to the Withdrawal Committee Monday morning. “But I am concluding that the committee also understands the difficulty we have in trying to get the office running again so that communications can be more complete.”

“I think there is not doubt in understanding that, unfortunate as it was, the Withdrawal Committee began to meet at the same point as we were in a period of total disruption with this move,” Hawkins said.

According to Hawkins, the systems were up and running as of Monday morning.

“This is much bigger than just sitting down and discussing withdrawal from the RSU, I know that, and the committee knows that,” Slack said. “So we will try to get a sub-committee made up so they can take what information we have gathered so far and go out and find out what is out there for AOSs and RSUs for us to join, and hopefully come back with what our options are.”

Wiscasset is seeking to withdraw from the RSU for the following four reasons:

• Decisions made by the RSU board are contrary to the wishes of the citizens. The town sees it has a loss of local control.

• The RSU Board validation process is meaningless when the voters oppose the budget they are obligated to pay.

• The geographic boundary of the RSU makes it difficult for communities to be represented at all meetings.

• The cost allocation formula does not favor Wiscasset.

The Withdrawal Committee is required to negotiate a withdrawal agreement with the school district and submit a proposed agreement to the commissioner of education by Oct. 17 unless the committee requests an extension from the commissioner.

Westport Island also approved a citizens’ petition to begin the withdrawal process from RSU 12 on June 12, and are also now going through the same process. Members of Westport Island’s Withdrawal Committee attended Wiscasset’s withdrawal meeting last week and were welcomed by the Wiscasset members.

It was decided by the two boards they would be attending eachother's withdrawal meetings. Chairman Mary Myers told the Westport Island board that Westport Island students were Wiscasset’s students, and it was their hope they would continue to be.

Several other towns in the state of Maine are working on the withdrawal process, and according to Slack, no town has completed the process in 90 days.

The next meeting of the Wiscasset Withdrawal Committee will be Thursday, Aug. 16, at 6 p.m. in the town office meeting room.