I am voting no on Freeport’s withdrawal from RSU 5. My reason: For Freeport High School to maintain its program with declining enrollments is expensive. Freeport taxpayers will pay more and the students will get less.

Proponents of withdrawal say the numbers are a wash, but this is simply not true. The former Town Council chairman challenged the findings of the withdrawal committee’s analysis. By using current data, rather than old data, he found that Freeport taxpayers will pay $907,000 more per year if FHS loses 60 pupils. This analysis was done by Rod Regier, one of the most respected leaders in Freeport. I believe his numbers are unbiased, unlike those developed by advocates for withdrawal.

I also looked at the numbers, using a cost-per-student basis, and reached a similar conclusion to Rod. Their per-pupil cost will go up with every student we lose. If we lose 60 students, the per-pupil costs rises 14 percent. If we lose just over 100, the cost goes up 29 percent.

The risk created by withdrawal is the loss of Pownal and Durham students, who are now required to attend FHS. If Freeport votes yes, in effect, we are telling Pownal and Durham we will allow your students to attend FHS but you have no say in governance. Since they will be free to choose any public or private school of their choice with a voucher, it is foolhardy not to expect that FHS will lose many of the current 185 students.

All of the risk of withdrawal falls squarely on Freeport’s students. Families that cannot pay for private school must stay at FHS, while FHS cuts programs.

FHS has improved in all aspects over the last 15 years, and needs a student body of sufficient size to continue to offer comprehensive educational opportunities to our students.

Please join me and vote no.

Michael Healy

Freeport