NORTHFIELD — While the Winchester High School Selection Committee only moved Hinsdale High School to the next stage in its process of finding an anchor school for high schoolers from Winchester, New Hampshire, the Pioneer Valley Regional School District is planning on staying in the mix as a choice school.

Winchester, New Hampshire has paid Keene High School to exclusively educate its high school students since 2006, but Keene opted out of the agreement in February 2024, and at the end of the 2026-2027 school year, the contract will expire, leaving the town without a home district.

On Jan. 13, the Winchester High School Selection Committee opted to only move forward with Hinsdale as its anchor district — Pioneer and Monadnock Regional High School were the other two finalists — but that doesn’t mean it’s the end for Pioneer in this process, as both Winchester and Pioneer officials say allowing students to choice out to other schools in the region is still on the table.

“One unrelenting fact about your current school board is that all members understand that not all of our students are well-served by the same high school or academic program,” Winchester Superintendent David Ryan wrote in a Jan. 18 letter to the community. “The school board has reiterated, as recently as Jan. 13 in public session, that it will offer a high school choice model and not include an ‘all-or-none’ clause in its negotiations with Hinsdale.”

Pioneer Superintendent Patricia Kinsella reinforced the Pioneer School Committee’s position that a partnership with Winchester would be positive for both districts, regardless of whether Pioneer is the anchor district.

“The School Committee has been clear that they find this to be an exciting opportunity,” Kinsella said Tuesday morning, “and we have been aware throughout the process that there were multiple options.”

A partnership could prove financially beneficial to Pioneer, while also expanding the number of educational options Winchester families have. Director of Finance and Operations Jordan Burns previously said a tuition agreement could potentially bring in up to $20,000 to the district per student, based on the current $19,700 agreement between Pioneer and Vernon, Vermont.

In his letter, Ryan emphasized that any sort of Hinsdale agreement will “most certainly” have room for students to choice to other schools. A draft model for School Choice he shared with the community showed there could be several avenues for Winchester high schoolers, including Pioneer and Franklin County Technical School.

Additionally, Pioneer sent a team of representatives to Winchester Elementary School for a visit on Jan. 14, which Kinsella said went well.

“Our team came away from that visit confirmed that we feel there could be a good match between Winchester and Pioneer,” she said. “We look forward to providing the Winchester School Board with any information they need to consider Pioneer as one of their schools of choice.”

Winchester will officially designate an anchor school at its Town Meeting on March 11, kicking off a yearslong process to change school districts. Any student who is a sophomore or older currently at Keene High School will graduate from Keene High School. Winchester students in ninth grade will have the choice to graduate from Keene High School or transfer to another high school prior to the end of the 2027-2028 school year, according to a contract addendum between the Winchester and Keene school districts.

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com.