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What Is Happening

The Restructuring Proposals

In March 2026, RSU 5 Superintendent Tom Gray presented "Planning for the Future of RSU 5" to the Pownal Select Board. The presentation outlined three scenarios:

  1. Status quo — which the administration describes as untenable
  2. Convert PES to a centralized preschool center — Pownal K-5 students bus to Durham
  3. Convert PES to a district-wide 6th grade school — Pownal K-5 students bus to Durham

In all scenarios except the status quo, Pownal loses its K-5 elementary school.

The presentation contained no financial modeling: no cost estimates, no transportation analysis, and no per-town assessment impact.

Why This Is Urgent

The RSU 5 Board has the authority to convert PES without a vote by Pownal residents. Maine law (§1512) requires a referendum for school closure, but "reconfiguration" is a gray area the Board can exploit.

Pownal has been through this before. After the closure of Pownal's middle school, the community was assured PES would remain. Assurances are not protections.

The Board approved a $100,000 professional facilities study in February 2026, with results due in December. But the statutory deadline for completing a withdrawal referendum is November 2026, before those results are even available. That is not the timeline Pownal would choose. It is the timeline the law requires.

Why Withdrawal

We have examined every legal option to protect PES while remaining in the district. Every one depends on specific Board actions that Pownal cannot compel. Maine's withdrawal statute (§1466) is the only mechanism that puts the decision in the hands of Pownal voters.

  • 43 towns across 15 districts have used this process successfully since 2012
  • The process includes multiple public votes and state review
  • Nothing is final until a town-wide referendum where every registered Pownal voter decides
  • Pownal students continue attending Freeport's middle and high schools after withdrawal

What This Is Not

This is not a separation from our neighbors. Pownal students will continue at Freeport's middle and high schools. Tuition revenue stays with the district. Community programs, sports leagues, and relationships across town lines continue.

We are also continuing to advocate for the budget transparency and community engagement improvements that benefit every family in RSU 5.