More than 70 percent of the voters in all four towns approved the district in a special election Oct. 13. This is an exciting thing from an educator's point of view. In addition, school leaders will have to deal with policy issues, such as making sure that curriculum guidelines and assessment goals are met for each state. And then there are the practical details, such as how to transport students from one place to the next. One of the big concerns in any district consolidation is that educators often don't pay enough attention to the impact on students' lives, said Paul Nachtigal, the co-director of the Annenberg Rural Challenge.
Consolidation can often bring about the loss of community involvement and attachment.
Saving Towns Plans for the Rivendell district were launched last year, mainly to help all four districts become more cost-effective. The districts were facing economic problems, primarily in dealing with grades 7-12. Among other factors, space at the junior high and high school level was tight, and administrators felt pressure to cut K-6 programs to offset rising costs for high school and special education programs. In Orford, on the New Hampshire side of the border, consolidation has become a matter of survival for the high school and the town. The K-12 district is facing declining enrollments in its high school, and many fear that if the high school dissolves, the town will follow, Ms. Moran said.