1,200 signatures by April 1, 2020   >>>CLICK TO DOWNLOAD<<<

We the undersigned voters request the Middletown Town Council, under Section 402 of the Middletown Town Charter, to adopt the following ordinance: ‘The Town of Middletown shall join with Newport to form a Regional Planning Board to explore School District Unification.’ *ask to see details described in the proposed ordinance to be presented to the Middletown own Council Approval of School District Unification would require a Special Election in November 2021.

Educational Benefits of Larger Schools

• More diverse courses than smaller schools, including AP and STEM opportunities unavailable in smaller schools.
• Provide students with course plans tailored to their strengths in certain subjects
• Allow students to more adequately prepare for college-level courses. 
• Allow the student to explore more specified courses to give them a better idea of what they will major in while attending college. 

Social Benefits of Larger Schools 

• Allow students to interact with a much larger and diverse pool of students. 
• Enable students to gain new perspectives on different groups of individuals they may have not been previously exposed to. 
• Grant students the opportunity to more easily integrate socially due to a large number of students to befriend. 
• Provide students with more and different extracurricular activities and clubs to strengthen connections. 

Using Regionalization as a Future Investment 

• Constructing a new and cutting-edge regional high school would allow students to properly prepare for college and the workforce.  
• In the near future, these students will become a highly skilled and educated group of young adults within the two communities that will bring several economic improvements to Middletown and Newport in the future.  
• Some economic benefits include a larger and more diverse workforce that can be taxed, resulting in a lower tax rate for all property owners.

Other Local Economic Benefits

• Both communities would also see an increase in businesses started and investments made within their cities, which would also contribute to tax revenue.  
• This newfound flow of taxable individuals and businesses can subsequently be allocated to other areas of much-needed improvements, such as infrastructure or public safety, causing the investment in the regional high school to come full circle.