New Haven superintendent previews $232M FY27 request, warns of $18.9M shortfall and seeks public advocacy

Superintendent Doctor Negron on Monday told the New Haven Board of Education that the district will request $232,000,000 from the city for fiscal year 2027, while describing a separate $252,000,000 figure as the amount required to maintain current services and staffing.

The presentation, delivered with Chief Financial Officer Hernandez, summarized six public engagement forums used to shape the budget request and provided a high‑level revenue picture. Negron said the district’s major state contribution is the Education Cost Sharing (ECS) grant, which the presentation listed at about $142,500,000, and cited other state components including alliance funding and interdistrict magnet aid. The presenters said total district revenue runs about $341,000,000 when combining ECS, local contribution and other grants and federal funds.

Why it matters: Negron framed the $232 million request as a conservative, transparent number that reflects recurring mitigation strategies the district has already implemented. He said those recurring savings offset some projected cost increases — for example, a roughly $6.2 million increase for teacher salaries is partly offset by about $11 million in recurring expense reductions carried from the current year.

“This is it. I’m not asking you for $252,000,000 because I already know that I have about $20,000,000 that I could use. I just need a little bit more,” Negron said, concluding that the district still faces an $18,900,000 gap to reach the $252 million status‑quo level.

The presentation included school‑level examples to show how budgets are built. Negron used Wilbur Cross as an example, saying the school would need roughly $16.4 million next year to maintain current staffing and services (about 191 FTEs), and that most school budgets are heavily personnel‑driven (the district sampled showed roughly a 90/10 personnel/non‑personnel split at school locations).

The board pressed for details. Board member Doctor Benitez asked how many people attended the six engagement sessions; Negron said staff collected sign‑in sheets and reported 50 participants total. Board member Miss Downer said turnout was low relative to the district’s size and raised repeated concerns about contractual services and privatization. “I cannot support a budget that don’t have any mitigation in it,” Miss Downer said.

Negron also described a call to action tied to pending state legislation. He referenced a proposed Senate bill (identified in the presentation as bill number 7) that would raise the ECS foundational amount; Negron said if that bill became law and the foundation increased to the cited level, New Haven Public Schools would receive about $29,200,000 in additional funding, not including any added weights for special education that the district is also advocating for.

What’s next: The board scheduled a budget workshop for the Feb. 23 meeting to review school‑based budget worksheets and more detailed line items; Negron said a recommended budget and comprehensive budget book are targeted for the March 23 meeting. Negron and CFO Hernandez said they will post frequently asked questions and school budget drafts online and continue community outreach as the numbers evolve.

The district’s presentation emphasized that the $232 million is preliminary and may change as updated projections and negotiations (including bargaining unit contracts and enrollment changes) are finalized.