A shared services agreement between six school districts in Berkshire County, Massachusetts is continuing for the time being even though expected state funding is no longer available. In September, Berkshire Hills Regional School District, Farmington River Regional School District, Lee Public Schools, Lenox Public Schools, Richmond Consolidated Schools and Southern Berkshire Regional School District agreed to share services anticipating a $300,000 state grant for implementation. But Governor Deval Patrick eliminated the grant program when he proposed $329 million in cuts to address a state budget gap. State Representative Smitty Pignatelli says the superintendents will continue meeting.
“This is dialogue that needs to go on,” Pignatelli said. “I think there are a lot of things that don’t cost money to implement and I think they are on the same focus going forward.”
Each district chipped in $350 to apply for the grant.
