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Students and parents urge board to save music and arts programs amid staff cuts
Summary
Students, parents and teachers told the Franklin Pierce School Board planned cuts to music and arts staff will diminish student opportunities and disproportionately impact students of color; several speakers questioned district budget priorities and urged alternatives to layoffs.
Students, parents and arts teachers told the Franklin Pierce School Board that proposed staff reductions threaten music, choir and drama programs that many said are central to student engagement and well‑being.
Faye Baer, a senior and longtime music participant, said the programs are "one of the largest and most welcoming communities" and warned that combining band and choir teacher roles will reduce opportunities for students and overwork remaining teachers. “By taking away the staff we have is simply just gonna diminish the program even further,” Baer said.
Rachel Gregory, a music teacher in the district and mother of a graduate, framed the cuts as a budget choice and pointed to district spending she said could be reprioritized. Citing the annual security officer contract, she said: “At an annual cost of $341,920, I think we can hire five new teachers... If we're so afraid that they're not going to go to class that we need first responders in the school, do you really think that they’re not going to come if we call 911?”
Multiple student speakers described music and drama as community-building and credited teachers with keeping them engaged academically and socially. A senior student said cutting advisers and combining positions would lead to burnout and reduce access to competitions, college connections and extracurricular pathways.
Commenters also raised questions about recent district compensation decisions and the apparent ability to fund leadership raises while cutting instructional staff, though no board member provided an immediate budgetary response during the meeting.
The board approved consent and several policy and funding motions later in the evening, but no vote at the meeting directly reversed staffing decisions described during public comment. Staff noted grant funding for social‑emotional learning and other one‑time funds earlier on the agenda.
The board took the public comments under advisement as it moved to executive session to discuss personnel matters.
