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Parents and teachers press for grassroots outreach as committee sends restorative budget to Select Board
Summary
During a lengthy public comment period, teachers, parents and residents urged clearer messaging, grassroots organizing and fact sheets to win support for a town override that would fund the restorative FY27 budget.
Dozens of residents and school staff urged the Southampton School Committee on March 11 to mount a coordinated grassroots campaign to educate voters about a proposed restorative FY27 budget and the consequences of a failed override.
Lauren Ames, co‑president of the Southampton Teachers Association and a 16‑year Norris teacher, read a union letter that described cuts already made — larger kindergarten and first‑grade class sizes, reduced speech and occupational therapy hours, fewer paraprofessionals and eliminated math intervention — and urged full funding to avoid further harm to student services.
Parents described concrete classroom impacts. Michelle Durocher, a long‑time public educator and single mother, warned that local teacher retention is already fragile and that pay differentials with nearby districts risk driving experienced teachers away. “If I could teach at Hampshire for $30,000 more, I would have done it,” she said, arguing that instability harms instruction.
Speakers recommended practical outreach tactics: double‑sided fact sheets of cuts and restorations, town‑wide mailings, visible yard signs, teacher and PTO involvement (within ethics limits for public employees), door‑to‑door canvassing at public sites and clear, data‑driven messaging on the town website. Committee members said the town administrator has already launched a budget document online and promised informational sessions with department heads to answer community questions.
Several speakers also proposed exploring additional local revenue sources — including maximizing local meals and cannabis tax receipts and reviewing short‑term rental (Airbnb) registration — while acknowledging that most available local options have already been pursued. One resident suggested a proposed local solar project as a potential revenue expansion to follow through planning boards.
The committee acknowledged the need for clearer messaging and earlier outreach than in the prior year and encouraged volunteers to coordinate outreach while keeping official communications factual and within public‑resource rules.
The public comment period concluded before the committee voted to forward the restorative budget to the Select Board.
