At the Calais School Committee's January 20 meeting, Superintendent Bob Moholland submitted a letter of resignation to the board, to be effective July 1. Reading from the letter, Moholland stated, "Due to personal reasons, my wife and I have decided that it would be in the best interest of our family to resign." Moholland will continue with his duties teaching at the St. Croix Regional Technical Center until his contract is completed. The resignation was accepted with regret.
     Moholland was hired as the superintendent for the Calais School System in April, replacing Keith Laser, who had stepped down after serving less than a year. The school board had hired Moholland for the superintendent position at $30,000 a year. Laser had been receiving an annual salary of $82,000.
     The meeting was well attended by approximately 60 members of the public, many of whom were present to either show support for or voice disapproval over a decision by the committee following an emergency executive session held on January 14. During that meeting, the committee unanimously voted to reverse the decision of the administration and to impose a different discipline on the student or students in question.
     The committee members stated that they had received significant feedback on the decision. "I had to buy a new battery for my phone," Chairman Bob Greenlaw said. After hearing the opinions from the public, Greenlaw closed the floor to comment, saying, "None of us are perfect. We all make mistakes. Everybody on here has the best interests of the school at heart."
     Two students and a teacher were given well‑deserved recognition during the meeting. Patsy Beckett has been recognized as the Teacher of the Year by the Veterans of Foreign Wars. Beckett will be retiring this year after having taught in the Calais area for 29 years. Elementary students Shane DelMonaco and Hannah Gadway were recognized for having each been awarded with a $100 scholarship from the Maine College Circle.
      The Calais Day Treatment Program will soon by joined by a new staff member. Darcy Gillespie has been hired as an educational technician III.
     The school department's contract for trash removal will be expiring on February 1, and in anticipation of that, the committee had previously put the service out for bids. From the four bids that were received, Cilley's Down East Waste LLC put in the lowest bid at $11,328. Moholland recommended that the committee take the lowest bid, and the motion was approved.
     The next meeting of the committee is planned for Tuesday, February 3, at 6 p.m. in the Calais High School library. The meeting scheduled for Tuesday, February 17, has been rescheduled to Tuesday, February 24, because of vacation week and the basketball tournament.