Some South Fork School Districts Rally for Efficiency Grant [UPDATED]

Some South Fork school districts are taking a collaborative look at lowering expenses and taxes.

Four school districts in the Town of East Hampton and two in the Town of Southampton have agreed to pursue funding for the Department of State's 2011-12 Local Government Efficiency Grant program. The Eastern Suffolk Board of Cooperative Educational Services has also agreed to take part, making for a total of seven districts and nearly $195,000 in potential money for the study.

According to a statement from the board on Tuesday morning, , , , Southampton, and Tuckahoe school districts have agreed to take part in the program that seeks to find ways to lower local government expenses and property taxes and implement new efficiencies. 

Up to $4 million of the State Budget was appropriated for the grant program. 

With seven districts participating in the study, the Department of State would contribute $175,000 with the districts sharing a cost of $19,444. Each district will contribute $2,777, making for a total project cost of $194,444.

Over 5,892 students are served in these districts that cover about 140 square miles of the South Fork.

The participating districts "are seeking to design and implement a study that closely examines a continuum of options ranging from the least transformative– the sharing of services, to the most extreme – consolidation, and all variations in between," the statement said.

The Springs school board said the collaboration started after and its feeder district. A rider had been included in the resolution that the two districts had to participate in a .

The boards would have to approve sharing services by a vote. District consolidation also cannot occur without board approval and a public vote.

A competitive grant, letters of supports have been requested of local and state officials.

Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr., I-Sag Harbor, noted that this is a competitive grant and that the application will have to be a good one to get the funds. But, he said he was optimistic for the districts. "What makes this appealing is that you've got six school districts involved. The sheer number of it makes it interesting to a governor . . .," he said.

Springs, Montauk, Sag Harbor, and Tuckahoe school boards approved pursuing the grant on Monday night and East Hampton, Southampton and BOCES will do so at future meetings, according to the statement.

The grant application is due on March 21.

“We have nothing to lose, and a great deal to gain – the possibility of improved educational opportunities for children and reduced costs to taxpayers," said . The districts should know by June if the grant has been approved. "That would give meaningful results by December, in time for the 2013-2014 budget development process," Hartner said.

Montauk superintendent and principal Jack Perna said he would actually like to see a modified BOCES for the East End form to be a larger, yet manageable, central district. "What I do not want to see is for the local schools to lose their identities," he said, adding "I think with a larger merger the local schools will be able to keep their identities," while sharing administrative tasks, like payroll, that could save the districts money.

Several years ago, Center Moriches and East Moriches school districts received the grant to study consolidation. Thiele said the study showed it would be beneficial, but nothing was done. The program was also implemented to study the proposed 5 Town Rural Transit System, he said.