LONGMEADOW — The School Committee voted to approve the enrollment of an out-of-state student, the first in several years, said Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Business Thomas Mazza.
Students who reside out of state are allowed to attend Longmeadow Public Schools for a tuition rate commensurate with the per pupil cost of education.
This year, the School Committee set the tuition rate at $17,275. The tuition money would be deposited into a revolving account and used in future years to offset special education expenses.
At the July 16 School Committee meeting, Mazza reported that Longmeadow High School Principal Thomas Landers reviewed the student’s information and recommended they be enrolled as a junior in the fall. Mazza confirmed that the student’s family would be responsible for providing transportation.
School Committee member Emily Hansen asked Mazza what the procedure would be if the student’s family moved into town part way through the school year. Mazza explained that a tuition bill is sent prior to the start of the school year and again halfway through the year. If the family relocates to Longmeadow, they would be reimbursed for the tuition covering the months that they lived in town and their education would be covered by the School Department’s budget.
School Committee Chair Michaela Fitzgerald asked how the out-of-state student policy relates to School Choice, a program in which residents of one municipality can attend school in another, based on the number of available seats. Mazza said School Choice is only available for students that reside in Massachusetts. Under School Choice, the student’s home district pays $5,000 to the district where the student is accepted to offset the cost of their education.
The School Committee also approved a restructuring of the Middle School Building Committee, which had included two School Committee members and two community members who are “familiar with the educational mission of the Longmeadow School District.”
Former School Committee member Julie Morgan served on the body, which oversees the planning of the new middle school, in her official capacity as a member of the School Committee. While she is no longer on the School Committee, she asked to remain on the Middle School Building Committee as a community member. The restructured committee roster now provides for two members of the School Committee and three community members.
Fitzgerald described Morgan as “knowledgeable, experienced and thorough,” and said that retaining her on the Middle School Building Committee would provide “continuity.”
