Finance committee stops short of full $600,000 midyear school appropriation, issues neutral recommendation after public comment

The Northampton City Finance Committee on Monday heard a broad public outcry over school staffing, special-education compliance and learning losses before voting to issue a neutral recommendation on a school committee request for a $600,000 midyear appropriation for Northampton Public Schools (NPS).

Superintendent Dr. Bonnie Bonner presented a prioritized list of staffing and one-time needs drawn from principals across the district and said the principal requests she compiled totaled roughly $294,883 for the remainder of the fiscal year. "You will note, although each building received an allocation based upon their enrollment, we did not come up to the $600,000. We were just about halfway," Bonner said.

The request originally came to the council as Order 25.217; the school committee voted 8–2 to ask the city for the full $600,000. Committee members and dozens of public speakers — including principals, paraeducators, parents and school employees — urged the council to fund the full amount, saying short-term hires and interventionists could reduce harms to students now and lower future costs.

Why it matters

Speakers repeatedly cited classroom crowding, unfilled special-education positions and benchmark assessment results showing many students two or more grade levels behind in reading and math. Multiple parents and staff described what they said were IEP violations and a reliance on contract services and temporary hires to meet legally required services.

What the superintendent presented

Bonner described a fast-turnaround process: she emailed principals after the city council referral, asked each building to prioritize how it would spend a midyear allocation, and compiled their emailed responses. Her list included restored interventionist positions at Bridge Street (math and reading interventionists focusing on grades 3–5), a third section and combined intervention position at Jackson Street, new paraeducators at several elementary schools, partial restoration of a BCBA at Leeds Elementary, special-education staffing additions at Rhine Road and the middle school, a 0.5 world language teacher at the middle school, and a full-time school psychologist and an additional special-education teacher for the high school. Bonner told the committee the principals’ requests reflected both one-time and continuing needs and that many principals had also listed the positions on their FY26 budgets.

Public testimony

About three dozen people spoke during the public comment period. Jackson Street Principal Lauren Brown asked the committee to "listen to educators, believe us, and act accordingly" and to approve the appropriation. Bridge Street staff and the district’s reading interventionist described unmet demand for targeted literacy instruction; Bridge Street was described multiple times as the district’s highest-need elementary school and the only elementary without a dedicated grade-level special-education teacher in kindergarten.

Other commenters, including Council President Alex Jarrett and community volunteers who prepared alternate budget spreadsheets, urged a mix of one-time and rolled-in funding and asked the committee to consider which amounts could be sustained in FY26 without undermining the city’s fiscal stability plan.

Questions and fiscal details

Finance Director Nardi told the committee benefit and indirect costs had been calculated at roughly 21.7 percent and confirmed the version of the spreadsheet attached to the committee packet includes a benefit allocation. Nardi also warned that several revenue assumptions in alternate fiscal scenarios (new-growth and cannabis receipts, in particular) are optimistic and would raise tax revenue risk if relied upon.

Committee action

After discussion, the finance committee considered several motions. A motion to give a positive recommendation on the full $600,000 request failed on a split vote. Committee members then moved to amend the order to the superintendent’s compiled list (approximately $294,883) and debated whether to issue a positive, negative or neutral recommendation. The committee ultimately voted to issue a neutral recommendation on the amended spending plan, sending the matter to the full City Council for final action. The committee did not make a final decision about rolling any of the expenditures into the FY26 base budget; members and the mayor’s office noted that choice would be part of the broader FY26 budget process.

What's next

The City Council will consider the finance committee’s recommendation at its next meeting. Committee members and community speakers said they plan further review of multi-year budget scenarios, and several suggested a joint working session with the school committee budget-and-property subcommittee to improve interboard communication before the FY26 budget is finalized.

Ending

Superintendent Bonner and Finance Director Nardi stayed through the committee’s questioning; committee members said they wanted additional time and data before voting on any roll-ins to next year’s budget. Public speakers urged the council to act swiftly so students can benefit before year-end.