Public school systems in Maine are in several types of school administrative units: Cities which have their own School Departments, also known as cities with individual supervision; School Administrative Districts (S.A.D.s) typically made up of 2 or more cities who cooperatively provide education to all of their students; Regional School Units; Community School Districts (C.S.D.s) in which 2 or more cities cooperate to provide education to some or sometimes all grade levels, Unions of Towns, in which two or more school administrative units share a common superintendent but are otherwise separate, and, in unorganized townships, also known as unorganized territory, schools which are run directly by the state.
The U.S. Census Bureau considers the city and town-controlled schools and the schools in unorganized territory to not be individual governments, while the incorporated school districts, interstate school districts, school administrative districts, community school districts, Indian schools, and applied technology regions are individual governments.[1]
The 3 Indian reservation school systems function as a union of towns.[2]
School Departments
School Departments serve a single town or city. Some school systems may style themselves as a "school district," others as a "school department."[3]
School Administrative Districts (S.A.D.s) typically made up of 2 or more municipalities who cooperatively provide education to all of their students. As of 2021[update], 184 cities and towns were served by 52 S.A.D.s, numbered 1 to 76 with numbers 2, 5, 9, 18, 21, 22, 25, 26, 34, 36, 38, 39, 43, 47, 48, 50, 56, 62, 66, 67, 69, 71, and 73 skipped.[3]
