North Andover boards narrow FY26 school budget options; school committee to decide Feb. 25

NORTH ANDOVER — Town and school officials on Thursday presented competing paths for the North Andover Public Schools' FY2026 request and signaled they will remove the smallest (“red”) proposal from consideration while the School Committee prepares to pick a budget to transmit on Feb. 25.

Town Manager Melissa Rodriguez and Superintendent Pam Lathrop led a joint presentation that laid out the town's revenue forecast, the mechanics of Proposition 2—2 (the state law that limits annual levy growth to 2.5 percent plus new growth), and three school-budget scenarios the committee transmitted for review. Rodriguez said the town's FY26 revenues are approximately $133 million, an increase of about 4 percent ($~5.2 million) from the prior year, and reiterated that North Andover currently has about $5 million in excess levy capacity tied to recent commercial growth from the Amazon development.

"If we use free cash to offset the budget this year, all we really would be doing would be creating a bigger hole for next year," Rodriguez said, arguing the town should not rely on one-time reserves to cover ongoing operating costs.

Superintendent Pam Lathrop summarized district finances: the schools closed FY24 with an estimated $4.5 million deficit, and FY26 is projected to have roughly a $3.5 million shortfall without changes. The committee transmitted three primary school scenarios: the guidance budget (about $64.86 million), a mid-range option (commonly called the blue budget, about $67.6 million), and a higher "level services" budget (about $71.8 million). A fourth proposal, labeled red, was discussed but then set aside by the joint group.

School Committee member Joe Hicks was direct about the guidance figure: "The guidance budget of $64,858,914 is woefully inadequate and would be devastating to our community," he said, urging the committee to move away from that option and toward budgets that preserve staff and services.

The difference between the blue and purple (higher mid-range) options is operational: the blue budget would require deeper staffing cuts (teaching assistants, some specialists, reduced athletics and program cuts) and produce elementary class sizes closer to 27; the purple option preserves more classroom teachers, maintains counselors and special-education supports, and targets class sizes generally in the high teens to mid-20s. Lathrop said the purple path still contemplates a temporary closure of the small Kittredge School with students reassigned to Sargent, Franklin and Atkinson under different distributions depending on the chosen plan.

Boards debated using the Amazon-linked levy capacity to accelerate Facilities Master Plan 2 (projects include a new or rebuilt Kittredge, Fire Station 2, youth center improvements, and renovations to Atkinson and Franklin). Officials warned that spending the full $5 million now reduces future flexibility and could require larger debt exclusions for capital projects. Rodriguez summarized the trade-off: using more levy capacity this year would reduce the town's ability to fund future capital without additional voter approval.

Finance Committee members repeatedly asked about sustainability in FY27 and FY28: even if voters approve an override or debt exclusion at Town Meeting, rising fixed costs (health insurance, retirement, liability) and negotiated salary steps mean the town could face similar shortfalls in subsequent years, officials said.

The public-question portion stretched for an hour. Parents, students and residents pressed the boards on special-education caseloads, counselor-to-student ratios, the impact of Kittredge's temporary closure on social-emotional services, and what would be cut if teachers could not be reduced. Superintendent Lathrop repeatedly said the district is evaluating out-of-district placement costs, special-education needs, and staffing reallocations and argued that some efficiencies and staff consolidations could help meet student needs even with fewer buildings.

Several student speakers asked directly about large AP and core classes and whether increased class sizes would reduce participation or access to electives; Lathrop and committee members said the district would preserve certification standards and professional development and invited more student input on priorities.

Before adjourning, the three bodies signaled agreement to remove the red budget from the proposed booklet and urged the School Committee to finalize and transmit a recommended budget on Feb. 25; Finance Committee's public hearing is scheduled in late March ahead of the April 12 warrant deadline and the town's May 13 Town Meeting vote.