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Meeting report · Kearsarge Regional School Board
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Kearsarge Regional School Board — May 21, 2026

The temperature was elevated by significant community opposition to school closures and a procedural stance by the Chair that limited direct engagement with public inquiries.

Date Thursday, May 21, 2026 Public comments 3 Decisions 14 Contentious
📄 Agenda 📄 Minutes

Public ⁠impact

Issues from this meeting with documented community impact.
01

Potential Facility Consolidation

Potential closure of a local school and restructuring of the district's facility footprint. Affected: Residents of Sutton and the broader Kearsarge district.
service reduction

Decisions ⁠logged

Every recorded vote, with timestamps and dissents.
Approval of May 7, 2026, meeting minutes
Ms. Mastin abstained.
6-0-1
Approval of May 7, 2026, non-public meeting minutes
Ms. Mastin abstained.
6-0-1
Acceptance of Kristine Wooten's resignation
Ms. Mastin abstained.
6-0-1
Approval of new hire slate (Eryn Bennetter, Lisa Davis, Tory Rudolph, Catherine Gorman, Alia Khatari)
Ms. Mastin abstained.
6-0-1
Approval of Camp Coniston payment ($12,975)
Ms. Mastin abstained.
6-0-1
Transfer of $111,000 for out-of-district special ed placement
Ms. Mastin abstained.
6-0-1
Approval of scholarship fund deposits and withdrawals ($20,742.69)
Ms. Mastin abstained.
6-0-1
Transfer of $7,065.15 for Sutton Central plumbing
Ms. Mastin abstained.
6-0-1
Adoption of Policy JFABA (Alternate Enrollment Pathways)
Ms. Mastin abstained.
6-0-1
Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery
Ms. Mastin abstained.
5-1-1
Adoption of Policy BBA (Board Powers and Duties)
Ms. Mastin abstained.
7-0-1
Adoption of Policy BBAA (School Board Member Authority)
Ms. Mastin abstained.
7-0-1
Purchase of cafeteria tables ($10,218.15)
Ms. Mastin abstained.
7-0-1
Acceptance of Facilities B report
Ms. Mastin abstained.
7-0-1

Topics ⁠discussed

Click a topic to expand quotes and full context.
00:00 Presentation

Becky Wilson of the NH School Board Association presented a scholarship to KRHS senior Leah Stone.

Speakers: Becky Wilson, Leah Stone
Approval of Minutes

The board reviewed and voted on the public and non-public minutes from the May 7, 2026, meeting.

Speakers: Jamie MacKenna, Kristen Schultz, Eric Gregoire
Administrative Reports

Reports were provided by the Chair, Superintendent, Business Administrator, and Assistant Superintendent regarding staffing, finances, and facility needs.

Speakers: Alison Mastin, John Fortney, Larry LeBoeuf, Michael Bessette
Public Comment

Community members expressed views on the potential closure of Sutton Central and asked questions regarding school administration.

Speakers: Jen Alford-Teester, Mag Francis, John Ellis
Policy Updates

The board reviewed and adopted updates to policies regarding alternate enrollment pathways, board powers, and school board member authority.

Speakers: Michael Bessette, Patrick McGowan, Jamie MacKenna, Kristen Schultz
Facilities B Report

Members presented a report on the district restructuring plan and critical facility needs following months of investigation.

Speakers: Jamie MacKenna, Patrick McGowan

Controversy & ⁠dissent

Where the board, the community, or the agenda diverged.

Potentially controversial issues

01

Potential closure of Sutton Central School

Community members argue the closure is an expensive decision that ignores local impact, such as septic system capacities at receiving schools, and harms community identity.
Board position: The board is investigating restructuring via the Facilities B report, signaling a move toward consolidation.
high concern
02

Staff prioritization in open-enrollment lottery

This policy decision directly affects how students are distributed across the district and may favor employees over other community members.
Board position: The board voted to prioritize Kearsarge staff in the lottery.
Internal dissent
One member voted against the prioritization, and one member abstained.
medium concern
03

Middle school bullying and student safety

Residents requested specific data and status updates regarding bullying incidents and the necessity of new administrative staffing (Dean of Students) to address it.
Board position: The board deferred answering direct questions, opting to follow up via email rather than addressing concerns during the session.
medium concern

Split votes

Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery
5-1-1

Community vs. board tension

Action ⁠items

Who owes what, by when.
Send missing information regarding the second set of sealed non-public minutes from May 7.
Assigned: Jamie MacKenna
Follow up via email regarding public questions concerning dean of student staffing and middle school bullying.
Assigned: Board Administration

Notable ⁠statements

Sutton is '5% of the problem, but 100% of the impact.' — Jen Alford-Teester · Testimony against the potential closing of Sutton Central school.
Reminded the public that there is now only one public comment session per meeting, a 3-minute limit, and it is not a Q&A session. — Chair Alison Mastin · Establishing ground rules before public comment.

Member ⁠positions

13 issues · 0 explicit · 12 inferred
Present
Approval of May 7, 2026, meeting minutes ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Acceptance of Kristine Wooten's resignation ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Approval of new hire slate ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Approval of Camp Coniston payment ($12,975) ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Transfer of $111,000 for out-of-district special ed placement ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Approval of scholarship fund deposits and withdrawals ($20,742.69) ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Transfer of $7,065.15 for Sutton Central plumbing ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Adoption of Policy JFABA (Alternate Enrollment Pathways) ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Adoption of Policy BBA (Board Powers and Duties) ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Adoption of Policy BBAA (School Board Member Authority) ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Purchase of cafeteria tables ($10,218.15) ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Acceptance of Facilities B report ABSTAIN ✓
Abstained from voting
Kristen Schultz
Vice Chair
Present
Approval of May 7, 2026, meeting minutes YES ~
Voted in favor
Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery YES ~
Voted in favor
Emma Bates
Member
Present
Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery YES ~
Voted in favor
Art Bobruff
Member
Present
Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery YES ~
Voted in favor
Eric Gregoire
Member
Present
Approval of May 7, 2026, meeting minutes YES ~
Voted in favor
Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery YES ~
Voted in favor
David Keith
Member
Present
Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery YES ~
Voted in favor
Kyle Lombard
Member
Present
Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery YES ~
Voted in favor
Ben Cushing
Member
Present
Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery YES ~
Voted in favor
Present
Prioritize Kearsarge staff in open-enrollment lottery YES ~
Voted in favor

Positions marked ~ are inferred from context and may not reflect the member's explicitly stated position.

Public ⁠comment

What residents said — verbatim, with timestamps.
3
Total speakers
0
Addressed
1
Partial
2
Not addressed
Jen Alford-Teester
Not addressed
She spoke against the potential closure of Sutton Central, arguing that the district is choosing an expensive capital project over a smaller repair bill. She also noted that the cost analysis ignores the impact on the receiving school's septic systems and emphasized the school's importance to the community. Key concern
The potential closure of Sutton Central School.
The Chair stated that questions/comments would be followed up on via email rather than being answered during the public comment session itself.
Mag Francis
Not addressed
She disclosed she was recording the meeting and commended the Facilities B committee for their transparency and website updates. She also noted that not all students in Sutton attend Sutton Central. Key concern
Maintaining transparency in committee work and clarifying student enrollment in Sutton.
The Chair established that this was not a question-and-answer session and that responses would come via email.
John Ellis
Partial
He requested data on how many students require counseling to justify the new dean position. He also inquired about the current status and outcome of a bullying situation at the middle school. Key concern
Justification for the dean of students position and the status of a middle school bullying situation.
Board response
The board noted that these questions will be answered via follow-up emails.
The board acknowledged the questions and committed to a follow-up via email, but did not provide answers during the meeting.

Accountability ⁠flags

Documented procedural gaps. Each item links to its source.

Agenda items not discussed

Topics discussed — not on agenda

Transcript vs. official minutes

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Report composed by grok-4.3, gemma-4-26b, grok-4-fast, grok-4.20-0309-reasoning · analyzed 2026-06-01.