Swansea school leaders review before/after care, preschool and bus costs as potential budget levers

Swansea Public Schools officials presented a review April 9 of the district’s before/after care program, preschool tuition, transportation contract and possible user fees as part of a broader look at potential savings or revenue to help future budgets.

The review covered operational details, enrollment variability and potential revenue options. Assistant Superintendent Liz (presenting the surround-care review) said the program charges $13 for either an AM or PM session and $25 for both sessions per student, and that the program’s daily and monthly enrollments fluctuate because families sign up a la carte. “The cost for either an AM session or PM session is $13 a day. And if you attend both AM and PM, it's $25 a day per student,” Liz said.

Why it matters: District leaders said the items are routine program-management levers that could, if pursued, generate modest revenue or reduce operating costs. They stressed the committee should move carefully to avoid sudden disruptions for families. Superintendent Holcomb and staff recommended no immediate fee changes for fiscal 2026 but asked the committee whether to pursue further study and limited pilot steps for next year.

Staff findings and next steps

- Surround care: Karen McCabe, director of the surround-care program, described a program that serves pre-K through grade 5 on most school days and offers AM and PM sessions plus limited half-day coverage. Staff noted many operational variables — daily attendance, family scheduling patterns and staffing that relies heavily on student/college employees — that complicate revenue forecasting. Liz told the committee Karen had seven staff available for a proposed six-week summer program and asked whether the committee wanted staff to move forward with public outreach. Holcomb said he asked staff to hold printed materials going home until the committee decided whether to change fees.

- Preschool tuition: Sean Scanlon (presenting comparative tuition data) said the district’s Hoyle School preschool charges $2,090 per year for general-education spots — lower than many nearby public and private programs. “When we look at it, Swansea is $2,090,” Scanlon said. He and Dr. Allison O'Kane noted the program historically fills its 40 paying slots with a waiting list and that tuition does not cover the full staffing cost; increasing tuition could generate additional revenue but would not fully offset preschool staffing costs. Staff recommended any change be phased and scheduled well ahead of registration windows.

- Transportation: Holcomb reported he had asked the district’s contractor, Amaril Transportation, for a cost per bus if the district were able to remove a route. Holcomb said the owner provided a figure of about $428 per day per bus, which, multiplied by 180 days, equals an estimated $77,040 in annual cost per bus. He recommended route analysis and software modeling (with parent surveys of ridership) before any consolidation, and staff said a 30-day contractual notice would be required to change service levels.

- User fees and athletics/clubs: Staff compiled user-fee examples from nearby districts. Holcomb said user fees for activities could generate revenue, but that athletics and extracurricular fees carry equity and retention trade-offs. Holcomb said transportation and surround care appear to offer more immediate yield for study than activity fees; several committee members echoed that fees for student activities would be the last resort.

Decisions and timeline

- The committee instructed staff to proceed cautiously: hold the current surround-care mailing, continue planning a possible summer program in collaboration with Parks & Recreation, and return to the school committee after the Parks & Rec meeting for a follow-up report. The committee set April 28 as the next meeting at which related updates (summer program, transportation route study results and any fee recommendations) would be discussed.

- Staff will pursue a transportation route review (including vendor route‑optimizing software and parent ridership surveys) and will present findings to the committee; no consolidation of buses was authorized at the meeting.

Ending: Committee members emphasized balancing fiscal responsibility with access, saying any fee or service changes should be phased and clearly communicated to families so that childcare and program access are not suddenly reduced.