PORTSMOUTH TOWN COUNCIL MEETING

September 23, 2009

7:00 p.m. – Town Council Chambers, Town Hall, 2200 East Main Road

MEMBERS PRESENT: Peter J. McIntyre, Hubert E. Little, Keith E. Hamilton, and

James A. Seveney

MEMBERS ABSENT: Dennis M. Canario, Karen J. Gleason and Jeffrey C. Plumb

SCHOOL COMMITTEE: E. Richard Carpender, Sylvia J. Wedge, Marilyn King, Marjorie Levesque, Cynthia S. Perrotti, Angela Volpicelli and Dr. Susan Lusi.

TOWN COUNCIL

Joint Meeting of the Town Council and School Committee

1. Presentation by RIPEC of the School Consolidation Study Regarding the

Regionalization of Schools

Executive Director John C. Simmons and Policy Analyst Ashley Denault of the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council (RIPEC), an independent, non-profit and non-partisan public planning, research and education organization, provided a power point presentation on their school consolidation study regarding the regionalization of schools on Aquidneck Island.

Mr. Simmons suggested that if Newport, Middletown and Portsmouth express the interest in consolidation a committee of 6 (a School Committee Member and a Town Council Member from each community) would have to decide what the commitment would be by each and how to go forward. A legislative process is required.

School Committee Chairman E. Richard Carpender stated that this meeting is the first step. The earliest we could do anything would be with the 2010 ballot.

A copy of the full report and all three presentations will be on the RIPEC website – www.RIPEC.org.

A motion by Mr. Little, seconded by Mr. Hamilton, to adjourn. All voted in favor of

the motion.

ADJOURN

TIME: 9:20 p.m.

____________________________ Kathleen Viera Beaudoin,

Town Clerk