School Committee readies advocacy campaign after split vote; finance committee delays recommendation

School Committee members agreed to mobilize a public outreach and advocacy effort after a divided committee vote and follow‑up questions from the town finance committee about revenue assumptions.

The committee voted to request a 4.83 million school budget figure but learned the finance committee elected not to recommend a number immediately, raising questions about revenue offsets and whether cost‑center detail had been sufficiently explained. Members said a small number of late questions at the December budget hearing contributed to confusion and underscored the need for clearer public communications.

Several members described receiving pressure after the vote. One member said she had been urged by a town committee member to change her vote for the sake of "optics"; she said she declined. Another member countered that committee deliberation and dissent are part of representative governance.

To respond, the committee set an advocacy schedule and agreed to produce materials explaining: what is in the proposed override package, why the district requested the amount, what cost centers and offsets (for example, tuition and grant lines) mean, and the timeline for town‑meeting and ballot action. The members set a public advocacy session on January 20 and a planning workshop for January 16 to prepare materials and talking points.

Committee leaders said they will attend the finance committee meeting and make themselves available to answer detailed budget questions; they emphasized that their task now is to advocate for the number they voted to approve and to clarify technical questions for other town committees and voters.