Two Bills Would Strengthen School Choice for Maine Students through Superintendent Agreements

Some Maine students are granted the ability to attend a public school outside of their home district through what is known as a Superintendent Agreement.

Under current state law, however, students may be denied such a transfer if either of the superintendents involved deems that it is not a child’s “best interest.” All it takes is a thumbs down from either superintendent for the transfer to be blocked.

State law does not specify what actually constitutes a transfer being “in the student’s best interest,” leaving this language almost entirely up to a given superintendent’s discretion.

A bill introduced by Rep. Laurel Libby (R-Auburn), however, would amend the laws governing this program to return the decision about what is in a children’s best interest to their parents, only allowing superintendents to deny a transfer if adequate space is unavailable.

LD 607 stipulates that a transfer may only be denied if the receiving school does not physically have the space to accept a new student, or if doing so would require additional staff.

The draft legislation also clarifies that parents and guardians would be solely responsible for transporting students to and from school.

Because transfers could only be denied on an objective basis, the existing appeals process would be eliminated.

Cosponsoring this bill are Rep. David Boyer (R-Poland), Rep. Robert A. Foley (R-Wells), Rep. Steven D. Foster (R-Dexter), Rep. Kimberly M. Haggan (R-Hampden), Rep. Michael J. Lance (R-Paris), Rep. Rolf A. Olsen (R-Raymond), and Rep. Jennifer L. Poirier (R-Skowhegan).

Click Here for More Information on LD 607

Another bill introduced earlier this year aims to amend the Superintendents Agreement process to reduce friction for Maine students.

Because these agreements are currently required to be renewed annually, families must continue submit a transfer request every year for students to maintain continuity in their education.

Should LD 218 — a bipartisan piece of legislation — be approved, however, these agreements would automatically be renewed each year without the need for students and their families to repeatedly seek approval.

While these agreements could still be terminated under certain circumstances — for example, if a student is not regularly attending class or is consistently disruptive — making renewal automatic would ease the process for many Maine families making use of this program.

This legislation was sponsored by Rep. Tavis Rock Hasenfus (D-Readfield) and cosponsored by Rep. Amy Bradstreet Arata (R-New Gloucester).

[RELATED: This Bipartisan Bill Looks to Improve Maine’s Public School Student Transfer Program]

A public hearing has not yet been scheduled for either of these bills, but both have been referred to the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee for further consideration.