Tariffs' potential impact on fuel, food and supplies is a concern, Wiscasset Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kim Andersson told the school committee March 4. The school department received letters from fuel providers that day, Andersson said. "They are already concerned about the tariffs that are coming at us and they said that they will just pass them along directly, that they have no other option."

"Yeah, I think that's going to be across the board ...," committee member Tracey Whitney said. Her subsequent ask on other things the tariffs could impact led to Andersson's mention of food and supplies. Then Andersson shared about a March 3 meeting she and other superintendents were in with Maine Education Commissioner Pender Makin. 

Andersson told the committee, "As of right now, it looks like federal funding is ... obviously ... a concern, but if anything gets changed, we are 18 months behind in federal funding because we (get reimbursed), so legally that should not be impacted. But we don't know, right? Anything could change at any moment. In a worst case scenario, we'll have to come back to the table and figure that out."

In a "terrible worst case scenario," voters' OK could be sought to access other parts of the fund balance or the department could ask to raise more money, Andersson said. "We're not going to end up closing a school."

In a speech posted March 3 at ed.gov and titled "Our Department's Final Mission," new U.S. Education Commissioner Linda McMahon talks about what may be to come and why: "The Department of Education’s role in this new era of accountability is to restore the rightful role of state oversight in education and to end the overreach from Washington. 

"This restoration will profoundly impact staff, budgets, and agency operations here at the Department," McMahon said. "In coming months, we will partner with Congress and other federal agencies to determine the best path forward to fulfill the expectations of the President and the American people. We will eliminate unnecessary bureaucracy so that our colleges, K-12 schools, students, and teachers can innovate and thrive ... This review of our programs is long overdue."

The federal matters came up as Wiscasset's 2025-26 school budget talks continued. The committee drew nearer a decision on an offer to take to a town meeting where voters consider the proposal piece by piece before it goes go the polls. 

Committee member Jonathan Barnes and resident Ed Polewarczyk asked why, given enrollment's decline, the department has increased in social workers to the equivalent of two full-timers. Andersson and Chair Jason Putnam responded, those services are based on students' needs.

It is not about enrollment, Putnam said. "If the students need more social help, then we get more social help for them."

Upping social workers and the schools' other support staff has been working really well, Andersson said. "Anecdotally, the kids we have now have much higher needs," just like they do elsewhere these days, she said. "We are working really hard to create a safe space for students to learn, where they don't have ... somebody blowing up (behaviorally) in the hallway or somebody escalating and freaking out in the library ... We're catching all these things before they escalate ... We have enough people that we're able to identify our kids' needs and catch them before they fall ..."

Barnes agreed on social work's importance, and said he was just trying to look at "how much we're paying, for how much students we have."

"It's your job to do that, so I appreciate it," Andersson said. 

Barnes asked the most questions throughout the evening. Putnam told Barnes he applauded his diligence.

The committee leaned toward, but did not vote on, a budget version with costs up 3% from 2024-25, and the would be-local funding ask up 7.5%.

Plans called for committee members to look at the budget again March 11. And Andersson expected to have improved numbers for them. She learned March 5, the state is upping tuition by 6% for the current school year and it will stay at at least that new rate for 2026-27, Andersson said in a phone interview March 5.

Adjusted budget figures would be ready for the March 11 meeting, Andersson said.