Superintendent Margaret presented the Haverhill Public Schools’ FY26 priorities and data to the Haverhill City Council, saying the district’s all‑in enrollment is 8,435 and that the student population is shifting toward higher needs and greater multilingual representation.

The presentation highlighted enrollment and demographic change as key drivers of the budget discussion. Margaret said the share of multilingual learners is about 14 percent at the high school and roughly 19 percent in kindergarten. She also said 61 percent of the district’s students are low‑income and 71 percent are considered “high needs” — a category the superintendent defined as students who are low income, English learners, have disabilities under IDEA, or both.

The superintendent framed those shifts as the reason the district prioritized people and intervention services when federal ESSER pandemic funds arrived, while trying to use nonrecurring spending where possible. “We made deliberate choices and did a combination of one‑time investments, capital, and investments in people,” Margaret said, noting the district used some ESSER funds to hire counselors and interventionists rather than reduce classroom staffing.

The presentation covered academic outcomes and programs: Haverhill students ranked relatively well among DESE “like communities” in science and have shown gains in math after a curriculum change two years ago. The superintendent said last year the district began full implementation of a new K–5 literacy curriculum called Wit & Wisdom and that in‑year benchmark assessment (i‑Ready) data show an annual growth rate at 129 percent of the national norm — a metric the superintendent described as “stretch growth” for students who have been behind.

Officials also reported student achievements and program growth: 63 percent of Haverhill High School students completed AP courses; 213 students participated in early college this year; and the Gateway School, an alternative 6–12 program that the district expanded, now serves about 150 students and produced 43 graduates this year. The superintendent said Gateway’s hands‑on programs — including an on‑site farm‑to‑table program and a new wood shop — are intended to reduce out‑of‑district placements and dropouts.

Budget context: the schools used roughly $26.7 million in ESSER funds over recent years and cut about $11 million from a level‑service budget last year without eliminating classroom teacher positions. For FY26 the district projects a net budget increase over FY25 of about 5.4 percent, driven largely by salaries and fixed costs. School finance highlights the superintendent gave to the council included a 7.1 percent increase in Chapter 70 state aid and a projected 2.5 percent increase in the city contribution. She also said outside revenue sources — an estimated $6.6 million in federal entitlement grants and roughly $6 million in competitive grants — are material to the operating picture and represent a budget risk if those funds decline.

The superintendent described several cost‑saving and service changes the district expects to use in FY26: converting written translation work to an AI‑assisted service (estimated savings about $300,000), bringing contracted speech‑language services in‑house (about $200,000 savings), reductions tied to a free college offering that reduced a $200,000 line, and contracting some bus driver and monitor runs rather than holding budgeted in‑house headcount (near $300,000 savings). She also said the district increased tuition offsets from its public day schools (Bartlett and Greenleaf) and expects better circuit‑breaker reimbursements for special‑education tuition costs that will offset part of rising out‑of‑district tuition rates.

On special education and placement costs, the superintendent told the council out‑of‑district placements remain relatively steady in number but much more expensive per placement — “$75,000 to $200,000 a placement” — and said keeping more students in district through expanded programs could both improve outcomes and lower net city costs.

Nut graf: The superintendent asked the council to weigh immediate needs for staff and in‑district special‑education capacity against the long‑term fiscal reality that federal COVID‑era funds and unusually large Student Opportunity Act increases will taper. “We are okay right now,” she said, “but our biggest concern is probably two years out.”

Questions from councilors probed several items: the definition of “high needs” (the superintendent said it includes low income, English learners, or students with disabilities under IDEA), how graduation and dropout rates compare with state averages, details of the Gateway School expansion, and whether the district can reduce out‑of‑district placements by creating more in‑district alternatives. Councilors also asked about the district’s contingency for anticipated retroactive pay tied to an expiring paraprofessional/ESP contract; the superintendent said the school has carried over some funds to cover potential retroactive payments in the near term.

Ending: The superintendent left the council with program highlights and benchmarks and emphasized that the district will continue pursuing competitive grant opportunities and in‑district program expansion while negotiating contracts. The council later moved the FY26 school budget for a separate vote of the full council during the meeting’s budget approvals.