The Blackstone Valley Vocational Regional School District’s $2.9 million bond request to establish three new programs will officially head to town meetings next month.
The unanimous decision to advance the bond request occurred in Thursday’s meeting of the District School Committee and marked the Committee’s final step toward making an official request for voter approval. The $2.9 million bond would be shared by the District’s 13 member towns over the course of 20 years and would establish new programs in Engineering (Mechanical/Civil/Aerospace), Veterinary Assisting, and Legal and Protective Services.
“The proposed programs, all of which involve over 2,000 hours of immersive laboratory/shop experience, are clearly distinguished by the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education versus more traditional career education orientation and/or thematic programs,” explained Valley Tech Superintendent-Director Dr. Michael Fitzpatrick. “Given the curriculum’s sophisticated, complex, and high-tech nature, no valid observer can reasonably conclude that the proposed programs could be easily replicated outside of a vocational technical school setting.”
Prior to its unanimous vote, the School Committee expressed optimism that the proposed bond will receive a rating similar to the District’s previous bond, which was given the highest possible rating of “Aaa” from Moody’s Investors Services. The District projects a favorable interest rate on the proposed new bond of 3.5% and Superintendent-Director Dr. Michael Fitzpatrick said every effort is being made to provide voters with relevant financial data.
“While towns, families, and individuals across the District deal with continued economic constraints, we understand that any proposal of new debt is likely to raise questions regarding impact to the local tax rate,” Fitzpatrick said. “To address any such questions as they relate to our proposal, voters can now access expertly-prepared financial data on the District website and see for themselves that the proposed bond’s likely impact to their annual tax bill is comparable to the cost of a cup of coffee.”
In addition to details on the projected tax rate impact per town, Fitzpatrick said the District website also includes a list of detailed answers to the public’s frequently asked questions, a breakout of each town’s anticipated debt ownership, and an in-depth video overview of the program expansion and financing. A private funding source has also been utilized to distribute an informational flyer to every home in the 13-town District.
To access full details on the proposed program expansion of Blackstone Valley Tech, District residents can visit http://www.valleytech.k12.ma.us
Submitted by BVT
UPTON DAILY 