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School business manager reports maintenance projects, tech upgrades and year-end budget moves
Summary
Business manager John Shea reviewed completed and planned facilities and technology work — from camera upgrades and touchscreens to a kiln ventilation project — and presented year-end budget estimates that led the committee to vote to transfer $206,219.19 from the special education reserve fund to cover tuition costs.
Business manager John Shea presented a year-in-review of facilities and technology work and the district’s year-end financial estimate at the June 18 School Committee meeting, and the committee approved a transfer from the town-authorized special education reserve fund to cover special-education tuition costs.
Shea listed completed projects for fiscal 2025 including a new access control system at the high school, a piano lab, a weight room, large IT switch replacements, a new auditorium projector and sound-system upgrades, and 20 new security cameras districtwide with a cloud-based video management system. He said the Wi-Fi access-point replacement project is about 90% complete and 320 Chromebooks were distributed for certain grades.
Shea described planned work for fiscal 2026: additional Chromebooks, auditorium stage replacement, a new intrusion alarm system, replacement of 11 security cameras, possible addition of license-plate cameras in parking lots to capture plate images (not linked to the state registry), a Mitchell School LED sign and completion of Mitchell School door replacements paused for welding and fire-alarm coordination. He said the Central School playground equipment was funded through ARPA and remaining ADA items will be installed over the summer.
On the budget, Shea said the district’s salary budget is $21,169,000 and he was expecting a positive available balance of $116,343. He said the non-salary category showed an estimated negative balance of $144,941 after accounting for anticipated “circuit breaker” reimbursements and extraordinary relief; after additional estimated year-end expenses the non-salary negative balance could reach $305,367. Shea told the committee the district had expected over $600,000 in circuit-breaker reimbursements but received roughly $309,000 because the state’s allocation was reduced.
To address the gap, the committee voted to transfer $206,219.19 from account 22-330-602-5961 (special education reserve fund) to 1-300-665 (special education tuitions private programs) for fiscal 2025, a transfer the committee carried out pursuant to Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 40, §13E.
Shea also reviewed revolving fund balances: school choice (~$780,000 with $250,000 committed to next year), an athletic fund balance the packet lists as $5,014,981, preschool and before/after-school care balances and bussing fees. Committee members asked about maintenance planning; Shea said there is a five-year maintenance plan and he can distribute it on request.
The committee approved the special-education reserve transfer at the meeting.
