FARMINGTON — The Regional School Unit 9 board of directors discussed bus safety and the upcoming budget and held a moment of silence for a recently deceased member at Tuesday’s meeting.
Superintendent Christian Elkington spoke during Director of Transportation Richard Joseph’s report, following recent bus-related accidents in which two students were killed.
The first incident occurred Nov. 21 in Rockland, where a student was hit after getting off a bus.
The second incident occurred the morning of the board meeting, when a 5‑year‑old was hit and killed by a bus in Standish.
The district sent a letter to parents Tuesday saying drivers were receiving additional guidance after recent events. The letter reiterated that drivers should remain “vigilant and focused,” which could lead to slight changes in pickup and drop‑off times.
Elkington said Tuesday the district was awaiting reports from the state on the incidents.
Prior to the first run, 11 sections of each bus are inspected during a pre‑trip check, Joseph told the board. Drivers also check buses after every run to ensure no students remain.
“Our district excels at training,” Joseph said. “I think we do more training than a lot of other districts.”
In addition to rigorous training for drivers, all RSU 9 buses are equipped with GPS, providing dispatchers and administrators data on speed and location.
One of the most important safety features on the bus, Elkington said, is the arm that swings out to keep students from walking too close to the hood, where they would be out of the driver’s view.
“Everything we do is making our buses safer, our transportation system safer and also making sure that we can take care of our students if something does happen on the bus,” Elkington said.
Joseph said two 2026 Blue Bird buses have been delivered. The new buses feature added safety measures, including front and rear cameras to cover blind spots, brighter LED headlights, signaling and indicator lights visible from farther away and a mechanism that prevents the door from closing if an obstruction, such as a student’s backpack, is detected.
New features to assist drivers include adjustable brake and gas pedals for shorter operators and an ergonomic steering wheel.
Historically, the district has maintained a strong safety record. Elkington said that when reviewing data a few years ago for insurance purposes, he was told few districts in Maine had a better record than RSU 9. Last year, the district reported one bus crash in which a student was injured.
Tuesday’s meeting began with a moment of silence for Griffin Mayhew, a Wilton director who died Dec. 9. Mayhew was elected five months ago, after serving on the board as a student representative.
Elkington read from a letter to the Mayhew family, saying the district was “truly heartbroken.”
“He was a kind, wonderful and considerate young person,” Elkington said. “The respect and dignity that he modeled in every conversation is something we all appreciated and desperately need in public life. We want you to know that his service was making a real positive difference in our schools and in the communities he chose to represent. We will miss him deeply.”
Another director said she was in a crash after the board’s last meeting and that Mayhew was especially kind in helping her afterward.
The Mayhew family is starting a scholarship fund in Griffin’s memory to benefit local students. The school board voted unanimously to donate $500 to the fund.
Mayhew’s seat was left empty at the meeting, draped with a jersey he wore his senior year.
In other matters, Elkington updated the board on the 2026‑27 budget process. Insurance and salary increases are expected to expand the budget by $1.3 million — more than 2 percent before any other adjustments.
The good news is RSU 9 has about $4.7 million carried forward from the previous budget.
The figure is higher than expected because the district did not use funds to offset the 2024‑25 budget and realized savings from unfilled positions and a larger‑than‑anticipated special education reimbursement.
“We’re in better shape, obviously, than we would have been,” Elkington said, referring to the balance carried forward. “We’re fortunate to have that.”
Elkington said he was concerned about $2 million in federal funding — Title I and special education money that helps pay the budget. RSU 9 and other school districts in Maine could face “severe difficulty” if that funding were imperiled, the superintendent said.
