The Canajoharie and Fort Plain school boards held their first joint meeting Wednesday to discuss the possibility of a merger feasibility study. Officials and board members appeared eager to proceed as they took the first step and agreed to discuss further.
Commissioning and conducting the study is a multi-step process that began with the boards meeting and deciding to discuss it among themselves at their respective meetings this month, before reconvening in February for a formal vote on whether to officially request. The next Fort Plain Board of Education meeting is Wednesday, while Canajoharie’s is Thursday.
At Wednesday’s meeting, HFM BOCES Supervisory Superintendent Dave Ziskin explained to the boards what the study would entail and provided some details about the finances of both districts. The merger would expand resources for students, create a larger tax base, increase building aid, and eliminate the issue of the two districts competing for staff members while there is a severe shortage of labor, said Ziskin on Wednesday.
For example, Fort Plain Superintendent Lauren Crisman said that the district had been looking for a technology teacher for a year, with no luck.
If the boards agree to commission the study, a bid will be put out to find a firm to conduct the inquiry. The study would include around 130-160 pages of research including current and projected enrollment, current and projected staffing plans, options for educational programs, transportation and potential fiscal implications.
Fort Plain was looked at when the St. Johnsville School District conducted their merger study before ultimately joining with the Oppenheim-Ephratah in 2012. The decision was primarily because of the discrepancy in tax rates being too wide.
Currently, the full value tax rate at Canajoharie is 16.05 and in Fort Plain it is 16.16, according to Ziskin’s presentation.
“It’s the perfect time, the tax rates are equal,” Fort Plain board member Jeffrey L. Jones said at the meeting. “If I had to vote tonight, I’d say absolutely.”
A combined Canajoharie and Fort Plain district would span 157 square miles. That’s a little smaller than Cobleskill-Richmondville’s 181 square miles and a bit bigger than Fonda-Fultonville’s 127 square miles.
Enrollment is 875 at Canajoharie and 804 at Fort Plain, putting a combined district just under 1,700 students. For comparison, the Broadalbin-Perth Central School District had 1,631 students last school year, according to the New York State Education Department.
The two districts already band together for several sports programs, a fact board members pointed to positively, as several recalled their children making great friends at the other district through combined teams.
“It makes all the sense in the world to move forward,” said Dr. Nick Fitzgerald, superintendent at Canajoharie.