Dear Paine Mountain Community, 

For several years, the Paine Mountain School District Board has been looking at how we can best support our middle and high school students in Northfield and Williamstown. Our main goal has always been simple: making sure every student has the best possible opportunities to learn, grow, and succeed.

Recently, this work has become even more important. We’ve faced some tough budget seasons and have serious questions to answer about our aging buildings, fluctuating enrollment, and the high cost of running two separate 6-12 campuses. We know we need a plan that is sustainable for our taxpayers while keeping our students’ needs front and center.

What does "student opportunity" really mean to us? It means offering a wide variety of classes and electives, strong sports and arts programs, easy access to technical education (CTE), and the specialized support services our kids deserve. We are looking for a structure that protects these experiences for years to come.

You might have heard about Vermont’s Act 170, a state-level plan to look at how schools across the state are run. While that process may eventually affect all of us, we believe Paine Mountain SD needs to take the lead now to address our own local budget and programming needs rather than waiting for state-wide changes.

We’ve put together the attached infographic (click here to view) to show you the different paths we are exploring. Right now, we are looking at four possibilities:

• Keeping things exactly as they are now.
• Bringing all grades 6-12 together onto one single Paine Mountain campus.
• Operating one district-wide middle school and exploring different ways to provide high school access, such as through tuition or specialized agreements.
• Looking at regional partnerships that might come up through our own local planning or the state’s Act 170 work.

We want to be very clear: no decisions have been made yet. Just because we are studying an option doesn’t mean we’ve chosen it.

We are evaluating each of these choices carefully. We’re looking at everything from class sizes and sports to transportation and long-term tax savings. Most importantly, we’re asking: what will this look like for the students themselves?

The Board is committed to an open and transparent process. We will share relevant information and data, provide multiple opportunities for community discussion, and allow time for questions and feedback before decisions are made. Any proposed structural change would also follow all required legal and state review processes before being presented to voters.

This is a big conversation, and we need your help to get it right. Several opportunities to learn more and participate are coming up:

• Regular Scheduled School Board Meeting: Wednesday, September 2, 2026-6pm at Northfield Elementary School-Library: The Board will hear a facilities presentation providing an overview of the current condition of district facilities. The presentation will also identify potential facility needs that would have to be considered if all students in grades 6–12 were brought together on a single campus. This is an informational presentation, and no decision about consolidation has been made. 
  • Click here for the Google Meet Link (Phone Number and Pin (‪US‬)‪+1 440-462-3554‬ PIN: ‪318 515 605#‬)
• Community Forum: Thursday, September 10, 2026-6pm at Northfield Middle High School-Library 
  • Click here for the Google Meet Link  (Phone Number and Pin-(US‬)‪+1 803-999-5464 PIN: ‪165 407 515#‬)
• Community Forum: Monday, September 14, 2026-6pm at Williamstown Middle High School-Library 
  • Click here for the Google Meet Link (Phone Number and Pin- (‪US‬)‪+1 251-262-4183‬ PIN: ‪405 230 751#‬)

We will also be distributing Staff and Community surveys in the coming weeks to gather your input. Additionally, we are working on planning forum events that will include our student board members, the Superintendent, and middle and high school students. We are still finalizing the details for these sessions and will share more information as it becomes available. Please join us, look over the information we share, and help us keep student success at the heart of everything we do.

Sincerely,
The Paine Mountain School District Board