State approves new WMS construction

Large parcels of land for sale, like this location off Hall Road
in Windham may be considered by RSU 14 as potential sites 
for the State Board of Education to purchase for construction
of the new Windham Middle School. RSU 14 hopes to have a
site identified by October 2022 with the new school building
finished by the fall of 2026. PHOTO BY ED PIERCE 

SEARCH FOR NEW 40-ACRE SITE BEGINS

By Ed Pierce

After a careful review of an architectural study of Windham Middle School, the State Board of Education has chosen to move ahead with construction of a new middle school and a search has been launched to identify potential sites for the new educational facility.

RSU 14 is now actively looking for 40-acre parcels of land that are available for purchase and them would recommend to the State Board of Education which one it would prefer to locate the new school. Because it is a state-funded project, the school district will work with the state to negotiate the project fees and a total cost associated with the construction.

The new school is expected to be ready by the start of the 2026-2027 school year, said Christopher Howell, RSU 14 superintendent of schools.

“The district is looking to narrow down potential sites by the end of this year,” Howell said. “The target would give the district ample opportunity to conduct environmental studies on a location. The final straw poll vote on a potential site is tentatively scheduled for October 2022.”

The original Windham Middle School was completed in 1977 and was built for a capacity of 483 students.  In the past year, that number has grown to 636 students, with sixth graders being housed for some classes at the adjacent Field Allen School, originally constructed in 1949. 

In June, the RSU 14 Board of Directors voted 8-0 to approve hiring the Lavallee Brensinger Company of Portland to serve as architects for the project.  

“Lavallee Brensinger, our architect, is completing a review of existing engineering studies that have been completed for the old middle school building,” Howell said. “There appears to be enough documentation at this time to support a new building for the district.”

In choosing a site for the new school, Howell said the school district, in consultation with the civil engineers on the project, will complete a matrix on all potential sites. 

“The matrix will include elements such as traffic, availability of utilities (three-phase power, public water, sewer), environmental impact, proximity to population density, and purchase price of the property,” he said. “Once a site is determined, a public meeting will be held for a straw poll vote. The RSU 14 board will use the recommendation to make a final vote that will be recommended to the State Board of Education. The state will reimburse the district for the property.  The reimbursement will be based on the average of two appraisals on the property.”  

According to Howell, both the architect and the RSU 14’s civil engineer will help the district with the decision matrix, which will be presented to the public for a straw poll. The results of that poll will be reviewed by the RSU 14 board for a final recommendation to the Department of Education.

“In addition to the decision matrix, the district will take into consideration the long and short-term costs of siting a building on a location,” Howell said. “This would include costs associated with student transportation, utilities, as well as possible road and infrastructure upgrades that would be required for the project.”

Other determining factors would weigh the impact to the environment, availability of space for athletic fields/parking and in a location near an existing road that can handle the traffic of a large school.

Howell said the most interesting aspect of working on this project so has been the opportunity to work with the state on a building project. 

“The process has allowed us the opportunity to look at programming across the district to ensure that we are covering all aspects of this project,” he said. “The opportunity to visit other recently completed buildings across the state has reinforced how fortunate we are to have this opportunity.”

After several years of being ranked at Number 5 overall among state-approved and subsidized construction projects, RSU 14 learned in March that the project was moving forward.

RSU 14 first applied for the Maine Department of Education’s Major Capital Construction Program in 2016 for funding for construction and was ranked as the fifth-highest priority among 74 proposed school construction projects statewide each year before gaining approval.

“The program is highly competitive as a positive rating in the process can lead to a significant financial savings for school districts,” Howell said. “A majority of construction costs for school projects selected through this program will be covered by the state.”

Once the school district starts to narrow in on potential sites, it will begin work with the architect on the conceptual design of the building.

“This process will include revisiting some visioning work that has been already completed with middle level staff,” Howell said.

The site selection process will be discussed at the Oct. 6 meeting of the RSU 14 Board of Directors and Howell said in the meantime, the public can forward any potential site locations to him at  chowell@rsu14.org. <

New administrative team hard at work for RSU14

Christine Frost-Bertinet and Christopher Howell

By Elizabeth Richards

On July 1^st, 2019, a new administrative team took the reins at RSU 14. Christopher Howell stepped up from the assistant superintendent position he had held for a year to become the district’s Superintendent and Christine Frost-Bertinet stepped into the role of assistant superintendent.

Howell has a long history in the district, having been in several positions throughout the district since 1996. “This is just a great opportunity to now lead a district that I’ve been a part of for so, so long,” he said.

His history with the community made the transition easier since he didn’t need time to learn who people were, what the community is all about, or time to understand the community issues, Howell said.  His awareness of certain issues and scope of work made it possible for him to move forward a little faster than if he’d come into a new community, he said. 

Frost-Bertinet worked in both RSU57 and the Gorham School District prior to becoming assistant superintendent for RSU14. Her experience includes five years as an elementary school principal, as well roles as an assistant principal and as a teacher of English Language Arts at the middle and high school levels. 

Because she was new to the district, Frost-Bertinet spent much of her summer meeting people and making connections. “I could tell from the onset of starting in July that this was a very child centered, learner centered school community of bright, caring innovative educators,” she said. 

“I was overwhelmed by the welcome I received. So many people reached out from a variety of roles within the district and the community to say welcome, which says a lot about the pride and the dedication to making sure this is a wonderful school community,” she added.

One of the things Howell has been working on recently is the Windham Middle School building project. The district is fifth on the list of state projects. RSU14 has already begun the visioning process, Howell said.

Staff from both Windham Middle School and Jordan Small Middle School have worked together to determine a vision for middle school education in the district.  Being clear about the vision, which is being developed with the help of a national expert, will guide the building design, Howell said.  

“We’re trying to get as much work done prior to official working with major construction project so we’ll be ready to go – that’s why we chose to do the visioning now,” Howell said.  With continued growth on the horizon, careful planning of space in the building is essential.

Frost-Bertinet has been working from the current strategic plan, which is in its final year, with a focus on the design for learning and the environment for learning.

On the environment for learning side, social-emotional learning has been a big part of the conversation. The district has come together as a team, with community representatives, board representatives, and teachers from all levels coming to the table to talk about current practices, areas of growth needed for social-emotional learning, and what the next steps should be.  “We’re going to be working on that throughout the year, and that work will inform the next strategic plan,” she said. 

This is the first time that the district has come together with many voices at the table to examine the work already done and plan the direction for making sure each child is getting their academic, social and emotional developmental needs met, she said.  “We’re examining great practice and looking to go to the next level.”

On the design for learning side, she added, they are working as an administrative team through a grant that involves many districts. “Our team is really examining what are those instructional practices that speak to the design for learning part of the district’s strategic plan,” she said.

Howell said it’s important for the community to know that the administrative team loves working with their students. “I know that Windham and Raymond are very special places to raise kids,” he said. “We really enjoy being a part of that process. We’re going to do whatever we can to make sure that every kid has every opportunity to be successful,” he said.

He added that in RSU14, they take instruction seriously. “We want to make sure that what happens in our classrooms is best practice, and those best practices then lead to opportunities. We want kids, when they leave this district, to have choice.”

Finally, he said, he wants people to know that “We don’t always get things right, but when we don’t we want to hear about it so we have the opportunity to fix it.” Feedback helps the district look at policies and practice, and they are open to making changes if necessary.  “We want to be kid focused, we want to make sure that their needs are being met, because that’s why we’re here,” Howell said.

Outside of work, both Howell and Frost-Bertinet have a passion for the outdoors, albeit in different ways. Howell spends time rebuilding and refurbishing old boats and getting them on the water, while Frost-Bertinet loves camping and hiking. Both have children of their own, as well. 

Howell, who lives in West Cumberland, has three sons. Being a visible, present part of their lives is important, he said. Frost-Bertinet, who lives in Gorham, has two children, one who graduated from high school last year, and one who is a senior. Being involved in their lives and helping them get to their next phase is a big focus presently, she said.

Howell said the combination of their experiences make he and Frost-Bertinet a great team. With experience at different levels of education, they can be more efficient, he said.  They both appreciate the opportunity to work in the district, and feel the community support they receive, he added.

So long, farewell and good luck to Superintendent Sandy Prince

By Lorraine Glowczak

In about two weeks and after 16 years at the helm, RSU14 Superintendent Sandy Prince will move on to new territory and adventures, handing the baton to Assistant Principal, Chris Howell.

Prince has spent the past 39 years of his career in education, first obtaining his degree in education at the University of Maine in Farmington. His initial foray in education, a vocation near and dear to his heart, was at the Spurwink School in Portland, working with students with special needs. At that time, Brown Elementary School, which was (and still is) part of the South Portland School System, rented classrooms from Spurwink, so Prince gained additional experiences in the public special education sector.

“While I was there, I picked up six college credits towards a master’s where I finally obtained my graduated degree in Exceptional Student Education at USM,” Prince said, further explaining that ‘Exceptional’ Education’ was the term used for Special Education at that time.

Soon upon his completion of his master’s, he taught educational leadership courses at the University of New England. In 1981, he was hired as Windham’s first full-time kindergarten special education teacher. “Sue Gendron was the teaching principal at that time, and she was like a mentor to me,” 

stated Prince. “I learned so much from her - I was only 26 years old. She was a great thinker and had a sensible approach to educational administration. I admired her ability to work with people and not micromanage them. I have always tried to emulate her leadership style.” Gendron eventually became the RSU14 Superintendent of Schools until Prince took her place 16 years ago.

After about four years in his teaching role, he became Director of Special Education services in Gorham. “I was hired by Dr. Connie Goldman,” stated Prince. “Connie led by example where she always made her decisions based on what was right for students. She hired some of the best educators and everyone admired Dr. Goldman who was a Harvard graduate.” 

While with the Gorham school system, Prince filled the role of principal at Rock [elementary] School as well as Gorham Falls, a kindergarten center. He also held the role of interim middle school principal for approximately three years. 

It was during his time there that he once again experienced and witnessed great leadership in action with Tim McCormick, who replaced Dr. Goldman. “He could not only think well and have great vision, but he was a genius at implementing that vision. It’s one thing to say you will execute an idea, but it is quite another to carry through and do it well.”

Prince moved on to Portland where he was the Principal of Lyseth Elementary for a couple of years and then accepted the position of Assistant Director of Educational Planning at Portland’s central office. Once again, he was guided by great leadership who helped pave the way to his own role as superintendent. “In Portland, MaryJane McCallum was the superintendent who hired me to be Principal of Lyseth School. An amazing leader who had great vision and was able to build a K- Adult school system that was well aligned for the 21st century.”

 After 16 years, he returned to Windham where, he has admitted is the “home of his soul.”

When asked about fond memories of the community he stated that he loved working in special
education and really enjoyed his contact with both students and parents. As far as successes, he points to the teachers and staff who made the biggest impact on students’ educational achievements. “I have been amazed at the high quality and passionate educators, staff and parents who provide a fun, learning atmosphere for our students,” he said. “I’m truly amazed and grateful.”

Prince admitted that it is the nature of the job to take a hit once in a while. “But I have always tried to make the best decision for kids – and I always tried to listen and respond with understanding in challenging circumstances.”

As Howell steps forward this fall, Prince offers a few words of wisdom. “First, I must say I am wicked excited for Chris,” he began and then continued. “As for advice I would remind him to also stay focused on the children and do what you morally believe is right. I know without a doubt that he will do well as the new superintendent – and will take it further, creating more successes.”

Next fall, Prince will take on a temporary position at the Scarborough School District. As far as retirement? “I’m keeping my options open.”

Good luck and farewell, Mr. Prince – and thank you for your dedication to the Windham and Raymond students. You will be missed.