Stratham school board ratifies four‑year teacher contract, previews FY27 budget with bond and health‑cost impacts

The Stratham School District board on Monday ratified a four‑year collective bargaining agreement with teachers and presented a first draft of the FY27 budget, with administrators warning that higher health insurance costs and the first full year of bond repayments will push near‑term spending higher.

The board voted 4–0 to ratify the teacher contract. The agreement, summarized for the board and public, provides an initial 3.5 percent cost‑of‑living increase in the first year, 3 percent in the middle years and a return to 3.5 percent in the final year before the next negotiation cycle, according to the district summary presented at the meeting. The board said salaries remain the largest share of the operating budget and were the principal focus of negotiations.

"Salaries is the biggest part of the budget," said an unnamed board member who led contract negotiations, describing talks with the teachers' union as "really collaborative." The board thanked negotiators, district staff and the union after the vote.

Why it matters: administrators said the budget preview is an early view and that several one‑time and ongoing cost changes will affect property taxpayers. The district included the first full year of the recently approved bond repayment schedule in the FY27 preview, and health insurance rate increases were flagged as a major pressure.

Key budget figures and items - Bond payments: the bond schedule in the packet showed a relatively small payment this fiscal year (about $286,000, interest‑only) and a jump to approximately $1.12 million in the following year when principal payments begin. Administrators separated the bond from other lines because the first‑year accounting is not directly comparable to later years. - Health and dental increases: the administration said the health/dental rate increase "was between about 14.82 percent across the districts," and later in meeting materials health‑cost increases were cited (a separate slide draft referenced 16 percent). The board asked administration to confirm the exact percentage for public materials. - Special‑education and tuition growth: the packet showed a jump in the "tuition private New Hampshire" line from $185,000 to $395,000; board members asked administration to recheck the percent and provided figures. Administration said these are out‑of‑district placements determined by IEP teams and agreed to confirm the count and calculations. - Proposed staffing: administration presented a case to restore one teacher position to move toward five teachers per grade level in some cohorts, citing current second‑grade classes of 19–20 students and the value of continuity for MTSS and grade‑level teamwork. - Contracted services vs. in‑house hires: the administration proposed reducing some contracted services and hiring a second board‑certified behavior analyst (BCBA) to supervise registered behavior technicians (RBTs), arguing the hire will build capacity and be cost‑efficient over time. - Conference approvals and caps: under the new contract language administrators described a process that lets Principal Kate Lucas approve conferences under $2,500; requests above that threshold come to the board. The packet set a $15,000 cap for the group of conference requests the board will review, specified as a budgetary control within existing lines.

Community engagement and next steps Board members introduced FAC/FACT members who will review the budget and help translate technical lines for public audiences. Abigail Dearing, chair of FACT, and several FAC members attended and were invited to submit questions in advance; administration asked FAC to return comments a week ahead of the next packet so staff can respond.

Administration recommended moving the January public hearing and board meeting from Jan. 14 to Jan. 28 to give the FAC and community more time to review materials; the board agreed verbally to that change and noted the statutory deadline for a public hearing is Feb. 6.

Votes at a glance - Approval of Oct. 15 minutes: approved (recorded as 4–0). Motion and seconder not named in the transcript packet. - Ratification of the teacher collective bargaining agreement: approved 4–0. The transcript records a motion and second but does not name the mover/second by full name. - Motion to keep selected sealed minutes sealed (recommendation to re‑review in 10 years): approved 4–0. - Approval of multiple policies (IJ, IKB, AC, ACA, ADC, GBAM, IMDA) after committee review: approved 4–0.

What remains unresolved: administrators agreed to confirm several numeric items for public materials — specifically the exact health‑insurance rate increase and the special‑education tuition counts and percent changes — and to provide a separate figure showing how the teacher contract increases would roll into the operating budget (article breakdown for voters). The board directed staff to publish clearer fact sheets and schedule two public presentations (one in person, one remote) ahead of the district meeting.