North Middlesex school committee approves five-day vacation buyback for superintendent

The North Middlesex Regional School District School Committee voted 5–2 on June 18 to grant Superintendent Brad Morgan five additional vacation buyback days for the current contract year.

The motion, made by Kim Craven, a member of the North Middlesex Regional School District School Committee, and seconded by Patrick McPhillips, approved “5 additional vacation buyback days in this contract year, for the FY ’25 contract,” as read aloud during the meeting. The committee recorded four other yes votes alongside Craven and McPhillips; Randy Rausch and Lisa Bloom voted no.

The decision followed an extended discussion about the district’s financial constraints and Morgan’s additional duties during the year. Randy Rausch, a school committee member, said he was “not for this” and noted district austerity measures: “We are in a budget crisis. We closed the building this year. We raised fees on families. We cut staff and supplies in the district.” Rausch said the timing—granting buyback days at the end of the year—was inappropriate given the district’s finances: “After the fact, at the end of the year is not the right time to be doing this, especially with the financial concerns of the district.”

Patrick McPhillips, a school committee member, defended the buyback as recognition of extra work Morgan assumed. McPhillips said Morgan received a $30,000 stipend after taking on additional responsibilities and argued the modest additional payout was justified by the workload Morgan shouldered: “Brad stepped up. He did get a stipend of $30,000… The minor increase is justified based on the workload he took on.” McPhillips added that denying the buyback could mean Morgan would take time off now and return to unfinished work: “Do we really want to not have him here working while we’re closing a school… he hasn’t had time to take leave?”

Kim Craven said she was fiscally conscious but supported the buyback because she expects Morgan to be present for required end-of-year tasks: “I am expecting the superintendent to be present for meetings from now until the end of the year… I am not in a position to ask him to work if he’s on vacation.” Carrie Battersby, a school committee member, also said she did not “love it” but would vote yes because she had upcoming meetings with Morgan about Ashby Elementary and wanted him available.

Opponents raised concerns about precedent and fairness. Lisa Bloom, a school committee member, said committee members and administrators should take their contracted vacation: “I totally agree with Randy… it’s his responsibility to take the vacation time before the end of the year.” Rausch asked whether the committee would face similar buyout requests from other year-round administrators who could not take time in June due to building moves and end-of-year duties.

Committee members emphasized the small scale of the buyback relative to district spending and the unusual workload Morgan carried this year. Keenan Francois and others noted the buyback represented about one week of time and that Morgan had effectively covered multiple roles during the superintendent’s extended duties.

The motion passed with five yes votes and two no votes. The committee did not adopt additional policy language governing future vacation buybacks during the meeting.