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Worcester Public Schools ask council to approve $524 million FY26 budget; officials outline class-size and safety plans
Summary
Superintendent and deputy superintendent presented a $524 million FY26 appropriation — a 6% increase tied to Chapter 70 and city funds — and described plans for about 50 new teachers, bus stop‑arm cameras under police review, modular classroom use and boundary changes to ease elementary overcrowding.
WORCESTER, Mass. — Worcester Public Schools officials asked the City Council finance committee on Tuesday to approve a recommended FY26 appropriation of $524,000,000, a 6% increase over FY25 that the district said reflects higher Chapter 70 state aid and an increased city contribution. The request also includes $4,000,000 for school capital borrowing, boosted by $1,000,000 in additional borrowing authority.
The district’s deputy superintendent, Bridal Allen, told the committee the FY26 operating budget “reflects an increase in about 50 teaching positions next year.” Allen said the planned hires break down to 25 at the secondary level (grades 7–12), 15 at the elementary level and 10 additional positions to be assigned in August “based on class sizes.”
District leaders described steps intended to relieve overcrowding at some elementary schools. Allen said the FY26 elementary teacher increases are intended “exactly for a reduction of class size,” and that the district is preparing a boundary‑reassignment process for school committee review to realign attendance zones. Where reassigning boundaries is not possible, the district said it plans to add and replace temporary modular classrooms that are approaching 40 years in age.
The committee also raised pupil‑transportation safety and technology questions. Councilor Piccillo asked whether the district has budgeted for stop‑arm cameras on school buses. Deputy Superintendent Allen said the district is “working with multiple vendors and the Worcester Police on a solution. We believe it’s going to be at no cost to us, but we still need to work through some legal issues on that implementation.”
Council members pressed the administration about using city‑owned properties as classroom space. Superintendent Menares said the Seaver Street property (61 Seaver) would require roughly $6,000,000 in renovations to meet K–12 building specifications and is not currently zoned or code‑compliant for K–12 occupancy; neighborhood requests to avoid bus traffic also limit feasibility. Menares said the administration is “very interested in the Fanning Building being remodeled to help with the increase in students.”
The superintendent flagged three primary federal funding streams the district relies on — Department of Education entitlements, USDA school nutrition, and Health and Human Services Head Start — and said she is most concerned about potential changes to USDA and Head Start funding. Deputy Superintendent Allen said the district’s federal funding totals “over $54,000,000” in the aggregate and that Head Start funding is “about $8,000,000.”
At the committee’s vote to approve the schools appropriation, the panel recorded a roll call and advanced the department’s FY26 recommendation to the full council.
Why it matters: The superintendent’s FY26 request sets staffing and capital priorities for the coming school year. The increase in teaching positions and the district’s plan to reassess attendance boundaries and replace aging modular units are intended to reduce class sizes and respond to local enrollment shifts; funding and zoning constraints make some reuse of existing city properties infeasible without significant additional investment and code changes.
What’s next: The finance committee voted to advance the schools’ FY26 appropriation to the City Council; the school committee will also consider the district budget in dedicated meetings next month.
