The school budget process took another step Nov. 16 with the school committee holding a public forum to get feedback from residents after first presenting the budget at a regular school committee meeting two nights earlier.
At the hearing, the committee cleared up one ambiguity left over from the earlier session: A level-services budget — the amount of money needed to provide exactly the same level of services in fiscal 2025 as in fiscal 2024 — would require the planned override to pass next spring.
Superintendent Jill Geiser was tasked with creating three different budget scenarios: a level-services budget; a budget with some increases; and finally, a budget if the override is rejected.
“If there is not a successful override in the spring, we will not be able to maintain all of the services and programming that you do see in that level services budget due to … contractual obligations and inflation,” said School Committee Chair Meghan Moriarty at the start of the meeting Thursday.
RIght now, the scope of the changes is unclear until the district gets a solid override number to work from. Several times both Tuesday and Thursday evenings, Moriarty and others emphasized the fluid, speculative nature that is just now beginning.
Many of the people who spoke Thursday evening were parents. Some were teachers in the district.
Their comments followed a theme: The impact of the potential cuts outlined in Geiser’s speculative budgets would have long-term, detrimental impact on the students.
The next step is a budget summit with the Belmont School Committee, Select Board, Comprehensive Capital Budget Committee and Warrant Committee on Thursday.
Same Services, Increased Funding
“You’re operating the same schools, you’re making adjustments to reflect changes in enrollment, you are migrating the fourth grade up to the CUE … and beyond that, there’s not much difference … you’re getting basically the same school you have now, you pay the extra $3.6 [million],” said Committee Member Amy Zuccarello on Nov. 14.
The level-services budget requires an increase of $3.6 million — driven in part by cost of living increases, inflation and moving fourth-grade students to the Chenery Upper Elementary School (CUE).
Larger Override Allows Schools to Reinstate Programs
If a larger override passes, the school system could see restoration of more than $1 million in positions that were eliminated or reduced in past years.
Among the positions Geiser listed include: an assistant principal at a cost of $138,000; a wellness director at $138,000; an evaluation team leader at the CUE for $138,000; and two math interventionists for students needing math support in the elementary school at a cost of $196,000. All the numbers given are for salary and benefits combined.
Moriarty pointed out any additions are contingent on money being available if the override passes.
No Override Will Mean Difficult Changes
The school department was asked to come up with several budget scenarios, including one that would cut $5 million from the budget, in the event no override passes.
“We’ve gotten up to $4.5 [million in cuts] and we’ve hit some major pain-points in our discussions,” said Moriarty at the Tuesday night meeting.
The advantage to talking about possible cuts now is clear: If the override does not pass, the school committee will have several months of discussion under its belt about what and where to cut to meet the new budget reality.
The possible cuts were broken into tiers, which would stack up as more reductions are needed.
- Tier 1 would see cuts to professional development and transportation totalling $405,413.
- Tier 2 cuts include extra-curricular programs — eliminating some and merging others, totalling $597,198.
- Tier 3 cuts include technology, instructional materials and limiting or eliminating some electives at the high school, $651,742.
- Tier 4 would mean cuts in staff, including instructional staff, $1,934,887.
- Tier 5 would mean closing an elementary school and redeploying the students into other buildings, $932,511.
Throughout the evening, Moriarty said the school committee does not recommend the cuts, but presented them, so the town is ready in case an override fails.
