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Committee debates middle-school —5-groups—53 configuration; amendment proposed to keep 2-person teams in fifth grade
Summary
Committee members and administrators debated creating a single three-teacher team in fifth grade to lower class sizes; a motion to reassign a middle-school math interventionist to fifth grade was proposed but not resolved before the final budget vote.
Committee discussion focused at length on a proposed operational configuration at the middle school that would create one three-teacher team in both fifth and sixth grades to mitigate class size.
The superintendent (Dr. Cherchek) and Middle School Principal Lisa Oliver reviewed enrollment projections and staffing scenarios during the meeting. They said the recommended staffing would yield 15 sections across the two grade levels, producing projected class sizes of about 23.3 in grade 5 and 24.2 in grade 6 under the 3-person-team plan; a strictly 2-person-team plan was projected to produce class sizes nearer 25 to 25.7. The superintendent said the 3-person-team model has been used previously in the district and at the middle school without adverse student learning outcomes.
Motion proposed: School Committee member Lorinda Visnick proposed an amendment to reconfigure fifth grade so that it would instead have an additional 2-person team (16 sections total) by reallocating an existing middle-school math interventionist. Principal Lisa Oliver said she could operationally implement that reassignment without increasing the total dollar amount of the budget.
Outcome: The amendment was discussed thoroughly but was not adopted or recorded as an amendment vote before the committee approved the overall FY26 budget. Committee members agreed the change would be operational (a reallocation rather than an increase in budgeted dollars) and noted such reassignments are typically handled by administration. Committee members asked administrators to consider teacher input and the transition from fourth to fifth grade when finalizing assignments.
Why it matters: Class-configuration choices affect class size, teacher planning time and which teachers share responsibilities for core subjects. Teacher groups and some committee members raised concerns about classroom transitions and teacher workload in three-teacher teams. Principal Oliver told the committee she had discussed the plan individually with teachers selected for team assignments and believed they could make the model work.
What stayed the same: The committee did not change the overall FY26 dollar figure during the discussion; the proposed operational adjustment would have shifted an existing position rather than adding budgeted FTEs.
