FREEPORT – It appears evident that the Freeport RSU Withdrawal Committee and Regional School Unit 5 will not meet the “soft” April 14 deadline set by Maine’s commissioner of education to reach a preliminary agreement for Freeport’s withdrawal from the RSU.

And, if a meeting between the two groups last week is any indication, it could be a bumpy ride on the road to any agreement.

The Withdrawal Committee and the RSU 5 Working Group, which represents the RSU in the negotiations, haven’t yet begun negotiating the first draft of a proposal put forth by the Withdrawal Committee on March 14. The two sides don’t meet again until April 2.

Freeport residents voted last December, 953-768, to explore withdrawal from the RSU, which also includes Durham and Pownal. The Withdrawal Committee is pointing to a second and final vote on the matter in November, a vote that cannot take place until Education Commissioner Jim Rier approves the agreement.

Peter Murray, chairman of the Withdrawal Committee, has said all along that the first deadline is never met in these negotiations, and that the commissioner always grants an extension. Still, when the two committees last met on March 19, Murray pressed the Working Group to review the draft agreement. Michelle Ritcheson, chairwoman of the Working Group, had said that her committee did not come prepared to do that, on advice from counsel that there was not enough time between March 14 and March 19. Murray asked Ritcheson if the Withdrawal Committee could expect a reaction prior to the April 2 meeting.

“I don’t see how next week we would be able to,” Ritcheson responded. “We have (RSU 5) budget meetings Tuesday night (March 25) and Wednesday night (March 26). I think we’re looking at April 2.”

Murray then asked Ritcheson if the Working Group could at least review the draft agreement during the meeting, and the two sides proceeded to do so.

The Withdrawal Committee draft calls for Freeport’s timely and orderly withdrawal from RSU 5, with educational continuity for all students. The proposal allows for future collaboration between RSU 5 and the new Freeport school administrative unit on administrative, instructional and extra-curricular functions.

In addition, Freeport would withdraw from RSU 5 in accordance with the terms of the agreement as of June 30, 2015. The town would create the new Freeport school administrative unit, which would consist solely of Freeport – unless Freeport joins, merges with or is included in another school administrative unit.

During the March 19 meeting, there was some push-back on the part of the Working Group. Twice when Murray asked Ritcheson for certain information, she replied that it was Freeport’s idea to withdraw, and that it was not necessarily the job of the Working Group to seek that information.

In the first case, Murray asked what schools or school units the Working Group had contacted for a possible relationship with RSU 5 if and when Freeport leaves.

“It would be helpful for us to understand what kinds of arrangements you would like to look at,” Murray said.

“That’s the primary drive of what the Working Group is trying to glean from the communities,” Ritcheson answered, “but I would respectively send it back to you.”

Ritcheson went on to say that Freeport, not RSU 5, asked for the withdrawal negotiation.

Murray then called for a 15-minute caucus, and the Withdrawal Committee left the Freeport High library to confer in a nearby room.

Following the caucus, the committees dealt with the future education of Durham and Pownal students, should Freeport leave the district. By state law, Freeport must allow the Durham and Pownal students to attend its schools for at least a year. The Withdrawal Committee is trying to accommodate students at Freeport Middle School beyond that one-year time frame. While Durham Community School takes in students through eighth grade, Pownal students attend Freeport Middle School.

Freeport High School is another story, as Murray pointed out. While RSU 5 residents approved a $14.6 million bond to renovate and expand the high school last fall, that vote became null and void once Freeport voted to explore withdrawal. The school, with a capacity of 500, might not be able to take in Durham and Pownal students, Murray said. If Freeport becomes a stand-alone district, Murray said, the town probably wouldn’t be able to sell a similar bond package to its voters.

Ritcheson then asked Murray what he envisions as a future capacity at Freeport High, and Murray threw the question back at her. Ritcheson indicated Murray should know, commenting, “It’s your school.”

The enrollment at Freeport High is 540.

Ritcheson said earlier that the Working Group had been in contact more than once with the Brunswick School Department and with School Administrative District 51, Cumberland-North Yarmouth. The Working Group also has made initial contacts with Yarmouth and Lisbon school departments, as well as Merriconeag Waldorf School of Freeport, she said.

Murray asked Ritcheson about the state of the Working Group’s discussions with the Brunswick School Department. Ritcheson said that discussions have focused on the availability of Brunswick Middle School, and the possible sharing of central office space.

Regarding employees, Murray said that the Withdrawal Committee is proposing to allow them to stay in the buildings they now work in.

Ritcheson noted that the draft agreement put forth by the Withdrawal Committee did not include repayment to the RSU for capital improvements made at the schools since the RSU was formed in 2009. Those improvements include new roofs on Pownal Elementary School and at the high school, new buses and a new boiler at Freeport Middle School.

A CLOSER LOOK

Upcoming meets of the Freeport RSU Withdrawal Committee: March 27, 6:30 p.m., Freeport High School; April 2, 6:30 p.m., joint meeting with RSU Working Group, Freeport High School; April 3, 6:30 p.m., Freeport High School; April 10, 6:30 p.m., Freeport High School; April 16, 6:30 p.m., joint meeting with RSU Working Group, Freeport High School.

The draft withdrawal proposal is available at www.freeport.maine.com.