North Attleborough School Committee enters MSBA eligibility period for high school project

NORTH ATTLEBORO — March 7, 2022 — North Attleborough School Committee marks MSBA high school invitation and rejoins state association after 20-year absence. The committee celebrated the March 2 vote by the Massachusetts School Building Authority to invite North Attleborough High School into the MSBA eligibility period, the first of several formal gateways in a project Superintendent John Antonucci said is realistically six to seven years from completion, with no cost estimate possible until a feasibility study and schematic design are finished — the earliest being July 2024. The 270-day eligibility window runs from July 1, 2022, through March 28, 2023, and requires the district to meet deliverables including forming a school building committee and securing a local funding vote. The committee also voted 5-2 to rejoin the Massachusetts Association of School Committees for the first time in roughly 20 years, at approximately $6,000 annually, over the objections of member James McKenna, who argued the organization had not advocated effectively for mid-sized suburban districts and that the town had saved more than $80,000 by staying out. The FY23 budget is expected to land roughly $300,000 below the original level-services request, representing a slightly over 4 percent increase over FY22.