FARMINGTON – At the RSU 9 Board of Directors meeting on Tuesday night, board members discussed several new Directors who will be joining the board following the recent municipal election.
Director Rich Ruhlin of Industry was reelected for a three-year term on the board, and Katie Martikke of Starks was elected to the board and will begin her term on July 1. Gerald A. Provencher Jr. of New Sharon was also elected to the board and will be replacing Judith “Libby” Kaut.
Superintendent Christian Elkington provided his superintendent’s report to the board, and stated that there has been a decrease in attendance over the past six weeks due to the recent two school vacations, along with a number of students who are absent because of illnesses.
“We had been on a really good roll all the way through to the end of December, and the last six weeks have not been as strong,” Elkington said. “A couple of schools have still made some nice improvements.”
Elkington stated that Mt. Blue High School made a 25% improvement compared to the same time in the previous year.
Elkington also noted that several high school students have had questions regarding recycling in the district. Prior to COVID-19 there was a recycling program set in place, but the program has not been active over the past three years.
“I get really impressed when I get emails like that, so I wanted to make sure that we recognized it and we’ll bring it back to our future board,” Chairperson Dee Robinson said.
