The Superintendent of Schools has only provided the proposed budget in notebook form to the school committee and some community members are already expressing concerns that it will be too high and will add a significant tax burden to homeowners. It is important to remember that budget building is a process and no final decisions have been made.
After the two failed referendums from last year, the budget-building process began early in the fall as the school committee set a target goal for a budget increase of seven percent. In October, teachers and school administrators reviewed their programs and assessed educational needs that needed to be addressed. Each building staff member submitted a proposal with rationale to building leaders for review and analysis and alignment with district goals. The administrators met extensively with central office staff and a proposed budget was compiled.
This preliminary budget was presented to the school committee in late February. It reflects an overall increase of 7.6%. Careful consideration and cuts have already been made at each step along the process, and, of course, in their review, the school committee will consider and review each budget line and proposal. This process will include at least five school committee meetings
between March 4 and April 10. During this time additional adjustments will be made by the School Committee that will have impacts on the bottom line. Once voted on by the School Committee, the budget will then be presented to the town manager on April 17 for review and approval. The budget must then be approved by the town council on May 14 in preparation for the public referendum on June 11.
Heather Perry had this to say about the process, “We are still very early on in the budget development process. I have proposed a budget to the School Committee within the initial target range that was set for operational cost increases. The School Committee will now dig into this budget and review it extensively to make additional adjustments that will ultimately reflect what they believe is ultimately the best budget to balance the needs of our students with the needs of our taxpayers.”
Perry continued, “I would encourage citizens to follow this process closely in order to better understand the ‘Why’s’ behind what may be added to the budget, what may be reduced from the budget, and what remains in the budget for FY 25.”
Follow the school budget process online here.