Beverly superintendent previews FY27 budget with proposed athletics, transportation and preschool fee increases

Superintendent Doctor Cushing on Wednesday presented a FY27 budget preview that would raise the school department’s level services baseline from about $85 million this year to roughly $90.45 million and, with critical requests, to about $91.34 million, and suggested targeted fee increases and enrollment-based staffing adjustments to help close the gap.

Cushing said the district must balance rising fixed and contracted costs, including an unexpectedly costly first year in a collaborative special-education transportation contract. He proposed modest annual fee increases across athletics and a one-time proposed ice-hockey fee of $1,000 to help cover rink and operating costs. “I don’t like fees. I don’t,” Cushing said. “There is a reality that we have to charge them. The inverse of proposing these is other reductions.”

The proposal would raise several user fees: a 10% increase in many athletics fees, a proposed middle-school per-sport increase, a proposed $1,000 ice-hockey fee, a 10% increase in transportation rider fees (to $346.50) and higher preschool tuition for certain options (presented as increasing from $5,500 to $7,500 in some tiers). Cushing said athletics currently costs the district about $900,000 annually while receipts from fees are approximately $200,000, and that fee increases alone would not fully cover costs.

Members pressed for more detail. Karen Robinson asked for a clearer, sport-by-sport accounting and earlier notice to families who must buy equipment or make financial commitments; Cushing and business staff agreed to supply a more detailed breakdown at a future meeting. John Taylor and others sought confirmation that the $5,000 school-choice tuition is set by the Commonwealth and does not reflect full local cost for some placements — an item Cushing confirmed and discussed in the context of Essex Tech and special-education costs.

The superintendent also outlined enrollment-based staffing adjustments and projected retirement savings of roughly $200,000 tied to known retirements. Specific proposed reductions included certain elementary and middle-school teacher positions that would be adjusted to reflect current class sizes and state guidelines.

Cushing stressed that these numbers are a preview and not a vote. He urged the committee to consider amendments when the formal budget is presented: “If there is a part of the budget you don’t agree with, the amendment process is the tool,” he said. The committee asked staff to return with sport-level cost detail, transportation-contract clarification, and clearer family communication before final votes later in the budget process.