Vote No!
TAMS Contract Buy-Out
Information you need to know
VOTE NO! on gambling with $1.2 million
The proposal from RSU 21’s school board to end the contract with TAMS (Thornton Academy Middle School) is based on a guess and a gamble. The RSU’s crystal ball says that a certain number of Arundel students will, at some future date, choose to attend MSK (Middle School of the Kennebunks). Is it worth betting $1.2 million to find out if they’re right? What the RSU fails to explain is that overburdened taxpayers in Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Arundel stand to lose big money on a bad bet!VOTE NO! because TAMS costs less than MSK
Here’s a financial fact that is NOT a guess: Thornton Academy currently charges taxpayers $7,441 per pupil + $1,502 in special education or $8,942 total. By comparison, RSU 21 spends $13,839 per pupil at its middle school. That makes TA a great financial deal for everyone living in the RSU. TA opened its middle school – in a bright, clean, newly renovated building – in 2006 at a cost of $3 million. Arundel taxpayers spent nothing to enjoy everything in the building & everything on TA’s 80-acre campus (like the stadium, auditorium, gymnasium, library, fields, etc).
VOTE NO! to support the future of TAMS
TAMS is like any other school. It needs students to operate quality academic programs, after-school clubs and athletics. RSU 21’s school board members understand this, which is why they want to bring Arundel students into a middle school that was built too large for their needs. If enough students did begin attending MSK, TAMS may close and Arundel students could lose the chance to attend a small school that gives them big opportunities. TA continues to offer more and more to all learning levels. While most public schools cut back this school year, TAMS added to its program. On top of that, teachers have great personal interest in providing the best for each child!
Vote No! on Tuesday, May 24
Polls Open 8 AM – 8 PM
Point 1. A gamble is thinking education via a contract is a good long term soloution. There is much pressure from parents in Arundel to have their kids go to MSK. If there was not, then TAMS supporters would not be worried about the long term future of TAMS being affected by students going to MSK.
ReplyDeletePoint 2. People must realize we are sending $$ out of district for almost $9,000 per student, when there is room to educate these kids at MSK for very little cost.
Point 2A. I over heard a coversation at the meeting a few weeks ago that made sense. If Arundel is so worried about taxes, they should get rid of school choice . 145 student x $9,000 = $1,305,000 per year to TAMS. Even if you hired 8 teachers in district to serve these students at a very high un-realistic salary and benifit cost of $100,000 each, there is still a savings of $505,000 per year. Now that is looking out for the taxpayer.
Point 3. This sounds more and more like a spcecial interest group. On one hand statements leading uninformed people to think that no one will choose MSK, AKA the gamble, followed by concern for TAMS closing if to many people attend MSK.
Point 4. A vote Yes on this issue is good for the Taxpayer as well as those who want to send their child to MSK or TAMS. Those TAMS supporters are the ones getting a good deal. We are using public $$ to send kids to a private School.
VOTE YES for RSU21!
Why support TAMS? This is a large district. Why should I support a private school?
ReplyDeleteJeff,
ReplyDeleteThe 2011-2012 school budget already contains the $7440 tuition for each Arundel Student calculated into the proposed budget, plus transportation....the public is unaware of this as the RSU does not share more than they have too...even when asked they opt to omit information to better position there story line.
Why support a private school? I would say because it is our public middle school...and it cost less than MSK as a public school...
If you vote to buy out the contract Arundel students can and will still choose to attend TAMS...there fore we will be paying each students tuition more than twice the amount...
Point 1-We are worried about the future of TAMS because of the fowl play that has gone on regarding this contract since we merged with the RSU. We were assured that the TAMS contract would not be affected when we merged with the RSU- but this was yet another LIE.TA has spent over $100,000 dollars defending a contract that should have never needed defending. The RSU is doing everything in its power at ML Day school to steer the kids to Kennebunk- this is why TAMS supporters are concerned... because you are not truthful.You have sold this 'Vote yes' as a choice, yet here it is in black and white, your goal is to take away our choice.
ReplyDeletePoint 2- Out of district? TAMS is Arundels Middle School. I thought Arundel was part of the RSU?
Point 2A- Seems to me that Arundel has always made better choices than the schools in the RSU. We have a contract with TAMS that allows us to pay $5,000 less per student than MSK. Arundel has been about choice for decades- and the very reason many people live in Arundel who are raising families.And do you really think you can sell folks in this district the fact that you can just 'absorb' TAMS kids without any added cost, and a $2,000,000 savings- no wonder this district has so much debt!Seems to me you could learn a few things from us!I think we are better off looking out for people's tax dollars.Just curious- Do you really think tax payers are that naive?
Point 3- Special interest group... We know who the special interest groups are- the very ones that should be paying tuition for their kids to attend MSK if they want to go to a school that is not their town's school like EVERYONE else has before them. You know who will be attending MSK next year- we all do! Don't try to pretend that there will be more than this special interest group- remember we know better- you already pulled this last year- 19,11, whatever!Again off with those numbers that you are trying to sell us. In all actuality, folks would be paying 1.2 million dollars for less than 10 kids to attend MSK next year- talk about a special interest group! This is the guaranteeed savings- $5,000 less per student, x's 140 students for a total of $700,000 savings per year, plus $1.4 million dollars- guaranteed!
Point 4- Vote NO. TAMS is Arundel's Public School and taxpayers pay the state minimum for tuition- $7,360 and cannot be charged more. The RSU continues to borrow more and more money and call $1.4 million dollars 'undesignated funds?'This is borrowed money that will need to be paid back. Taxpayers are not as uninformed as you think and neither are the people in this district.
It's unfortunate that I have to post this anonymously, but I have friends on both sides and I've seen things get quite ugly over the last two weeks. I have kept quiet but feel compelled to express my frustration and anger over the TAMS contract buy-out issue. First question is, why should OUR tax money support a private school? It doesn't belong to Arundel. It's a contract that purposely had a buy-out clause-it's not breaking a contract or breaking a promise. I was always told it was better to buy than rent. Why are we renting? Second, if people really CARE about the tax payer, a private school choice for one town in the RSU shouldn't even be an option. Now, that would be a great way to save tax dollars! I have done my research and some of the numbers on this blog are half truths-stretching it for a desired result. Many are using different forms of propaganda (glittering generalities, logical fallacy, etc.)to instill fear in the community trying to get the taxpayer to THINK that they will save money by sending Arundel's children to a private school. Again, not presenting the full truth. I have heard of many bullying/harassment incidents by teenagers and children in Arundel, all being TAMS supporters. Now, maybe there are other incidences, but I haven't heard of any. Regardless, I was taught that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. What on earth are we teaching are children???? Shame on the parents! I feel sorry for the kids. How do you think those 5th grade children wanting to go to MSK next year will be treated by the TAMS' supporters' children if this contract is not bought out? Third, from what I've seen, the TAMS supporters are only out to protect a school that doesn't even belong to them. Also, they are trying to rally support to vote down the school budget. Sounds personal to me...Perhaps, they don't like the improvements at MLDay? Or the fact that they're now paying their teachers a fair salary? Not impressed with the recent test scores? Maybe they'd prefer the old leadership back? If Arundel overwhelmingly votes down the school budget, then when more cuts are made to make a budget that they finally DO agree on, then those cuts should go directly to MLDay.
ReplyDeleteThe sun hasn't been shining all week, so take off the blinders people and try for a minute to think of those 5th graders wanting to attend MSK. Voting no is taking away their choice to attend a PUBLIC school in their own district. A district that their parents pay taxes into! The TAMS supporters already have what they want-a private middle school education funded on the backs of the RSU 21 taxpayers. At least give those students wishing to attend a public school the choice to do so. It's the right thing to do; It's the unselfish thing to do. The TAMS supporters were willing to take the GAMBLE when they signed that contract with TAMS a few years back, why are they so UNwilling to do it now? Probably because they know it's not a gamble. Kids want to attend MSK. This shouldn't be about winning. It shouldn't be about which is the better school. It should be about bringing our TAX dollars back where they belong and giving those wanting to send their children to our district's own middle school the choice to do so. Buy-out the contract!
VOTE YES! Let's put this to rest!
A CONCERNED Arundel Taxpayer and Child Advocate
I just posted a long thought out response here, and it appears it was deleted by someone. I was under the impression that this was open for any one. I was perfectly appropriate. I guess the truths that I shared were a bit too glaring for the TAMS supporters. It's too bad. I guess desperation got the best of someone. I'm glad I have a copy of what I typed saved...
ReplyDeleteIn response to the last post...your long thought out response was not deleted yet identified as SPAM from the system...It is perfectly appropriate for this site...This site is about sharing point of views...for all sides to be able to post with their name or Anonymous as you have done...When a message is identified as SPAM it is required to be manually approved which it was. As you should be able to identify your post which was in question as being listed @ 10:45pm as you can see above...I would not say you opinion was to glaring...I would say just a bit long for the software to identify it as valid.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comments...
If anyone really believes that educating Arundel students at MSK is not going to cost a cent, you are wrong. Tuition costs either go up or down. There is a big difference between being fiscally responsible, and spending that taxes people out of their homes. There has been talk about the town where people are saying that next years budget is going to decrease, hmmm...renovations, salaries, benefits? TAMS/TA doesn't ask us for a cent for repairs, and the students are educated in a first class environment, with a top notch education! If RSU 21 board members really wanted to know what was going on, they would have gone to visit the school, but sadly they didn't. Vote NO! Realistically speaking, if RSU 21 can take in more students with out a higher tax burden, then MSK is over-staffed. There are classes with 4 students in them at the high school. 4 students? Is that fiscally responsible, or is it an I don't care attitude because RSU 21 said so? Arundel is going to say NO again to the budget, the buyout, and the cost sharing formula, and hopefully RSU 21 will wake up and figure out that Arundel is not happy, and there will be a divorce soon. It's kind of like a bank, you make deposits, and you make withdrawals, well the only thing that RSU 21 has done is make withdrawals, so we have nothing left to give!
ReplyDeleteDid a little bit of math here, the buy out doesn't make fiscal sense! It is a gamble as many have said.
ReplyDeleteEstimated Estimated Total Tuition
Grade 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2010-2013
6 9
7 3 9
8 1 3 9
9 1 3
10 1
Total 13 12 9
TAMS 7441 96,733.00 66,969.00 50,226.75 117,195.75
MSK 13127 170,651.00 109,848.00 82,386.00 362,885.00
RSU 21 267,384.00 176,817.00 132,612.75
Total cost if the contract was not broken. 117,195.75
Estimated Total increase because the contract was broken 480,080.75
The Arbitration ruling: 36,113.00
Total Cost 516,193.75
Over a period, there will be no potential savings. Tuition costs to TAMS is based upon State Average, per pupil cost is based upon RSU 21 spending, and amounts over EPS, renovations, loans.
Of those who showed interest in attending MSK 32% declined to enroll.
Food for thought:
Grade 2011-2012 2012-2013 2013-2014 2014-2015 2015-2016
6 12 12 13 16 13
7 5 12 12 13 16
8 5 5 12 12 13
9 4 4 8 8
10 4 4 8
11 4 4
12 4
22 33 45 57 66
RSU21 288,794.00 433,191.00 590,715.00 748,239.00 866,382.00 2,927,321.00
Thornton Academy 163,680.00 252,376.00 348,512.00 451,504.00 532,176.00 1,748,248.00
Cost per pupil Savings if we withdrew from Rsu 21 1,179,073.00
All this talk about TAMS is pointless. I believe this site is pointless. Certainly, the post above mine is pointless. It appears very evident to me, the group suporting TAMS is doing just that. The group suporting the RSU is suporting the entire district, TAMS included. If anyone reading this has not already made up their mind, I suggest you visit the district website RSU21.net for information.
ReplyDelete