On March 13th, please vote YES on Article 5!

This Article is recommended by the School Board and the Budget Committee.

Article 5 funds the contract that covers the Monadnock District’s psychologists, occupational therapists, and speech/language pathologists.  These professionals have advanced degrees and extensive specialized training, and support achievement in all areas of students’ lives.  They help students with behavioral disorders to conduct themselves safely, and also assess and evaluate students throughout the school year so that parents, administrators, teachers, and healthcare providers have the information they need to help every child succeed.  It is a great benefit to the District to employ Specialists directly instead of paying private agencies for these professional services, many of which are required by law.

We appreciate your support!  Here are your voting locations and hours.

Fitzwilliam       Town Hall                                            11:00a.m.-7:00p.m.

Gilsum             Community Center                               1:00p.m. -7:00p.m.

Richmond        Veterans Hall                                       11:00a.m. – 7:00p.m.

Roxbury           Meeting House:                                    6:00p.m. – 8:00p.m. (7:00p.m. Town Meeting)

Swanzey          Christian Life Fellowship Church          8:00a.m.-7:00p.m.

Troy                 Samuel E. Paul Community Center        10:00a.m.-7:00p.m.

 

Welcome Back to School!

We are pleased to welcome returning members and new colleagues to the District.  Please let us know how we can support you professionally and how we can improve learning conditions for our students!

Please attend the deliberative session!

This important meeting is on 2/6/16 at 10:00 a.m., at Monadnock Middle/High School in Swanzey.

Things You Should Know:

• You must be a registered voter in order to participate, but non-voters can attend.
• All warrant articles will be presented and discussed.  Some articles can be amended.
• The meeting can last for two or three hours depending on the length of the debate.
• The school district operating budget voted at the Deliberative Session is the budget figure that appears on the ballot in March.
• At the Deliberative Session any voter can propose amendments to reduce or increase the operating budget.
• Your presence at the deliberative session shows that you care about our schools!

Welcome to the new school year!

We are delighted to be starting a new school year.  Don’t hesitate to contact us throughout the year to discuss workplace issues.

Thank you for your support this year!

As the 2014-2015 school year draws to a close, the members of the Specialists of Monadnock Association would like to extend their gratitude to the community for its support this year. Each June we look back at the school year behind us and reflect on the steps we took in the past ten months, both in the classroom and out. This year, in addition to the opportunity to educate, support, and nurture our students, the specialists, teachers, and staff of the Monadnock Regional School District had the chance to work closely with the community to garner support our collective bargaining agreement. The Association is very grateful for the support of the voters who put education first and came out this year to stand up for the students in the Monadnock Regional School District. We are looking forward to growing this connection between the school and the community in the coming months and are excited to work with you again next year.

May 4-8 is Teacher Appreciation Week!

We’d like to commend all the teachers in the District for their hard work, dedication, and professionalism.  Please take a moment to thank a teacher this week!

Thank you to everyone who voted!

We are proud of our pro-education community. Thank you to everyone who voted in favor of new contracts for the Specialists of Monadnock and the Monadnock Education Association.  We appreciate your support for our educators and students!

On March 10th, Vote YES on 7 and 8!

This year, the Specialists of Monadnock District and Monadnock Education Support Staff Association teamed up with the School Board to create new contracts.  The contracts are fair, fiscally responsible, and designed for sustainability.  Our agreements represent a mutual investment in the future of the Monadnock Regional School District. We are pleased to partner with the School Board in this effort to achieve our shared long-term vision of being the best school district in the state.

We understand that health insurance costs are rising, and if these contracts are approved by the voters on March 10^th, employees will pay for a greater share of their premiums.

Please join us in supporting our school district, by voting YES on Articles 7 and 8!

Voter Information

Fitzwilliam	Town Hall	11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Gilsum	Gilsum Elementary School	1:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Richmond	Veterans Hall	11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Roxbury	Meeting House	6:30 p.m. – mid meeting
Swanzey	Christian Life Fellowship Church	8:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Troy	Troy Elementary School	10:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Vote Yes on Article 7 – March 10th

Vote Yes on Article 7 – March 10^th

• A YES VOTE on Article 7 is a vote in support for the foundation of your community…children! 
• A YES VOTE on Article 7 is in support of a fair Collective Bargaining Agreement for the Specialists of Monadnock, which consists of psychologists, occupational therapists, occupational therapy assistants, speech/language pathologists, and speech/language assistants. Pursuit of this agreement came as a direct result of inequities in salaries and benefits amongst members of this group. This agreement supports fairness between its members and provides transparency to the public.
• A YES VOTE on Article 7 is a vote in favor of transparency in our school budget and supports the professionals who help our students every day. 
• There are currently 9 members in this group due to staff reductions. When the group petitioned the Public Employee Labor Relations Board (PELRB) for certification, there were 13 members, which is over the required number, and was approved by the PELRB on July 10, 2012. 
• The staff in this group have had salaries and benefits frozen for the past 4 years. Using the credentials of the professionals in this group, MRSD is able to bill services through Medicaid. Last year, this group was responsible for bringing in over $350,000 to the district.
• In the first year of the contract, all members at the top of the scale will receive a 4.75% raise to compensate for the last 4 years of a frozen salary. Two members will receive higher raises to bring them onto the salary scale. This accounts for the average 7.11% increase stated on the article. This DOES NOT mean every member gets a 7.11% raise. For the remaining 2 years of the contract, the raises will be 2% and 1.5% for all but one member who remains “on step”.
• While there are increases in salary, the Specialists are paying more for their insurance. 
• As a result of the failure to pass the agreement last year, changes were made to the new proposed contract. The new agreement is $53,203 less than what was proposed last fiscal year. The members of this group, the specialists negotiating committee, and the school board listened to the voters last year, and feel this is a fair agreement, and we respectfully ask for your support!!

More School Board Candidates Announced!

Troy residents Scott Peters and Adam Hopkins have announced that they will run for school board in March.  Read the Keene Sentinel article HERE.