The state’s School Choice program makes money for the Old Rochester junior and senior high schools, but all three elementary schools continue to say: “No.”

In separate decisions in the past week school committees in Marion, Mattapoisett and Rochester opted out of a program that would allow them to accept out-of-town students with the out-of-town students’ towns paying $5,000 each.

Participation in School Choice will yield 72 students and $360,000 this year for the junior and senior high schools.

But officials at their elementary counterparts worried that accepting more students might increase their costs and have other unforeseen consequences.

Superintendent Doug White supported the committees’ decision due to concerns over a lack of information about the program and the School Committees wanting to keep class sizes small.

All three towns have dealt with budget problems due to increasing costs of special education, more students attending vocational schools and contractual obligations with teachers.

Marion will reduce their staff by five and Rochester will cut one teaching position as well as several support personnel.

“The tough decisions needed to be made,” White said. “We are nearly at capacity and we are losing teachers. I believe not participating would be most beneficial. Maybe when our financial situation changes we can take another look.”

At their May 3 meeting, members of the Rochester School Committee suggested tabling the matter until the fall to weigh the pros and cons of participating in school choice.

“I think this is something we should put on the fall agenda when we are able to have more of a discussion about it,” said committee member Robin Rounseville. “We want to ability to keep class sizes small and right now we don’t have the staff to do it.”

The Mattapoisett School Committee members approved their draft of the budget proposal without any staff cuts last month.

On May 7, the School Committee turned the proposal down in a close 3-2 vote due to a lack of information about the school choice policy.

Committee Chair Gracinda Knox echoed the concerns of the Rochester School Committee, and suggested holding further discussions on the policy before moving ahead.

“I do believe that there has to be more research before we vote positively on school choice,” Knox said. “If the committee is leaning towards it, then let’s vote on it for 2014.”

The Old Rochester Regional School Committee first adopted the school choice policy in June 2009 for both the Junior and Senior High Schools.

Since then the schools have seen an increasing number of students participate in the program.

In 2013 the number of school choice students at the Junior and Senior High Schools will rise from 51 to 72 students. Of those 72 students, 24 will go to the Junior High, while 48 will go to the High School.

White said the policy allows students to come from anywhere in the state. At Old Rochester Regional, the school choice students travel from Wareham, Fairhaven, Acushnet and Foxborough.

While the Old Rochester Regional School district may collect the tuition from the students coming in through the program, White said there is a flip side for the students’ hometown.

The towns draw on their state funding to pay the tuition for a school choice student to attend an out-of-district school.

Given the tough economic times, White said this could be a hit on the towns’ budgets.

“If we take several students from a district, it can have a severe impact on the revenue that district has coming in,” White said.

The School Committees are required by state law to vote every year on whether or not to participate in the school choice program.

If the committees decide to move forward with the program in 2014, each would have to vote in favor by next June.