Newport schools ask city for $1.1 million as enrollment drops and special‑education costs rise

Superintendent Jermaine and Ronald Gonsalves, the Newport Public Schools director of finance and administration, presented the school system’s proposed 2025–26 operating budget at a City of Newport budget workshop and requested a 4% local appropriation increase — $1,100,000 — to help close what the administration described as an approximate $3.3 million gap.

The request is part of a budget the district described as “very challenging” because enrollment has fallen about 13% over roughly a decade while the share of students receiving Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and multi‑language learner (MLL/ELL) services has grown. Director Gonsalves said the department exhausted much of its education fund balance in recent years and now has “just under $1,000,000” remaining for one‑time needs.

Gonsalves told the council the budget relies on several assumptions, including a 4% local increase and level state aid; he said updates to state funding could arrive within days. "The current gap is about 3,300,000," he said, adding the district is holding an unidentified $647,000 “holding balance” to be allocated as the budget process continues.

The presentation described how prior fund balances were used: a July 2023 balance of about $6.5 million was drawn down in part to pledge roughly $2 million toward the Rogers High School build and to cover two CIP projects at Thompson (about $700,000), with the district ending one year with a $291,000 deficit. Gonsalves said an additional $1.9 million was earmarked in July 2024 and that the fund balance has been substantially reduced as a result.

Administrators and committee members repeatedly emphasized cost drivers: special‑education services (including out‑of‑district placements), transportation and information‑technology needs, and staffing costs (salaries and benefits represent roughly 80% of the district’s budget, officials said). The district reported it currently sends 27 students out of district for specialized placements; Director Gonsalves characterized that as about 10% of a particular subgroup and noted the significant per‑student cost of such placements.

Superintendent Jermaine said the district has held numerous planning meetings since November 2024 and has identified a pathway that includes personnel reductions through attrition, freezing vacant positions, realignment and targeted eliminations. “We’ve done a combination of personnel reductions that would happen through attrition or potentially freezing vacant positions as well as realignments or elimination of positions,” Gonsalves said. He added that the budget development targeted roughly a 10% reduction across major labor groups.

Several councilors challenged the request and the timeline for budget review. Councilor Carlin called the workshop process “insulting,” arguing the council and public received insufficient time to review a $125 million city budget and a school budget compressed into a few days. “This is an insulting process,” Carlin said. Jermaine replied, “I’ll respond, but I disagree with everything you’ve said. … We deal with children,” and defended staff levels as responses to increased student needs after COVID‑era learning loss.

The committee discussed potential consequences if the full request is not approved: the administration warned of significant staffing reductions. The director said the proposed reduction pathway currently lists five administrative positions as part of the cuts and that larger numbers would affect teachers and paraeducators; the district has not issued layoff notices and declined to identify individual employees pending formal notices.

Councilors and school officials spent substantial time on regionalization and shared services with nearby Middletown as a potential long‑term cost mitigation strategy. District and city officials estimated consolidation or shared services could yield multi‑million‑dollar savings over time, including higher transportation reimbursement and administrative efficiencies — but noted such changes would take years, require coordination with unions and other municipalities and need separate governance decisions.

Committee members also raised program‑level concerns. Officials said Newport’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs attract out‑of‑district students; last year about one in four CTE seats were filled by students from other districts, producing tuition revenue that officials said understates the full per‑student cost. Director Gonsalves said the district receives a sending tuition amount (noted in discussion as roughly $15,500) while the actual per‑student cost can be materially higher.

Superintendent Jermaine and school committee members urged continued pursuit of grants and state program changes. The administration identified potential near‑term revenue from federal and state sources — including a community eligibility determination for free school meals — but said such revenue would not fully close the $3.3 million gap.

The workshop concluded with both bodies acknowledging the continuing negotiation: the school department pressed for the requested local increase to “stop the bleeding,” as officials put it, and council members emphasized the city’s own multiyear shortfall and need to balance competing priorities. State aid, a pending county or regional plan, and further internal budget choices were left as the next variables to resolve before the budget must be finalized.

Looking ahead, the district and council said they would reconvene as part of the remaining budget workshop schedule to refine numbers and consider revisions, while the school administration continues to seek grants and state guidance on funding formulas and certification changes.