CALAIS — The Calais School Committee backed plans Wednesday for an international trip for some Calais Middle/High School students, and Calais Alternative School announced a “short wait list” for new referrals.
Vanessa Flood, vice principal at Calais Alternative School, said the wait list stems from the school’s process for accepting students from “sending schools” — schools that identify students who may be better served by alternative education.
Sending schools include those in AOS 77, also known as the Sunrise County School System, and other districts.
Calais Alternative School uses an applied behavior analysis, or ABA, model and is the only stand-alone ABA school in the county, Flood told Monitor Local.
Applied behavior analysis uses data-driven methods and positive reinforcement to teach skills and reduce challenging behaviors. Flood said the school aims to integrate students back into their sending schools.
At Wednesday’s meeting, Flood said two students who returned to their sending schools at the start of the school year continue to make progress.
Flood said the school assesses each referral individually and ensures it has the resources to meet the student’s needs.
“I have to think of the need of the student,” she said, explaining the short wait list.
All classrooms have behavioral health professionals, she said, but some professionals work with several students while others provide one-on-one support.
Flood said the school is short one education technician, and another is retiring. The staffing changes factor into the school’s review of referrals for the wait list.
Earl Watts, a social studies teacher at Calais Middle/High School, presented a proposal to the committee for an inaugural international trip to Ireland, Scotland and England for some high school students in 2028.
Students could earn high school and undergraduate college credit through a program that combines study abroad with a multidisciplinary curriculum developed for the trip, Watts said.
Watts said he plans to chaperone the trip and serve as liaison between EF Tours and Calais Middle/High School. He is working with English and art teachers to develop lessons and materials and is selecting teacher-chaperones to meet a ratio of one adult for every six students.
The trip would be open to Calais Middle/High School students in grades nine through 12 who meet criteria by a set deadline, including passing their classes and limiting truancy and detentions.
Not all eligible Calais Middle/High School students will be able to attend because of the cost or other commitments, such as travel plans during the trip, which is tentatively scheduled for spring break 2028.
Watts said he hopes to bring 12 to 15 students on the inaugural trip. The school could offer the program every few years to students who qualify and can make the commitment.
“It’s going to be expensive,” Watts said.
He assured the committee that the district would not be responsible for student costs and said he is planning fundraisers as the school’s liaison.
EF Tours would provide a fundraising webpage for students who qualify and commit to the trip, Watts said.
Superintendent MaryAnne Spearin said fundraising platforms are common among high school booster groups.
“If the kid doesn’t raise any money, the parents make the payment that month,” she said, “and if the kid fundraises, then the payment gets made up to that (fundraising) point. This is no different than other high schools.”
Watts said Waterville schools use the same EF Tours program he is considering and that he “would love to start something like that” in Calais because of the educational opportunities it offers.
Committee members discussed the cost to families. They agreed that while not all students would be able to attend, fundraising and family support could help many afford the trip.
Students could also take on additional responsibilities, such as a part-time job, to cover the remaining cost.
After considering the financial burden and hearing a full presentation on the program and its benefits, the School Committee approved a motion allowing Watts to continue planning the trip. The next steps include presenting the proposal and costs to parents, securing teacher-chaperones, fundraising and developing the curriculum.
