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Parents and educators oppose BOE staffing cuts, press BET to protect classrooms and fund Riverside renovation
Summary
Parents, PTA leaders and school staff told BET that the proposed Board of Education budget would cut dozens of student‑facing positions and urged alternatives that preserve teachers; Riverside School parents and the building committee also pressed for $43,000,000 in construction funding to address accessibility and capacity problems.
Speakers representing PTA groups, school leaders and parents urged the Board of Estimate and Taxation (BET) to press the Board of Education (BOE) for a budget that preserves student‑facing staff and to fund an extensive Riverside School renovation.
"When you reduce teaching positions at GHS, the impact is immediate," said Charles Goliner, vice president of the Greenwich High School Class of 2028, warning that larger classes reduce individual attention. Monica Wong, GHS PTA co‑president, said the proposed BOE budget includes cuts of 6.5 teaching positions and one administrative post at Greenwich High School and called on BET to ask the superintendent for an alternative that retains those staff.
Multiple speakers gave different but overlapping figures: Gabriela Feinstein said the BOE‑approved operating budget would cut 11.5 positions districtwide, including four core academic roles at Central Middle School; other advocates cited cuts of 7.5 positions at GHS and similar reductions at CMS. Speakers asked BET to request modeling showing what a budget that retains those full‑time equivalents (FTEs) would look like.
Riverside School drew sustained attention. Principal Jason Martin described constraints from an aging building and asked that Riverside not be pushed back in the capital plan. Riverside PTA and community members urged allocating $43,000,000 in the FY27–28 capital plan for construction, citing accessibility problems (no elevator, undersized common areas, lack of sensory rooms) and potential cost increases if design and construction are delayed.
Speakers also raised student mental‑health needs as a factor in staffing decisions and said reductions could reduce supports for students with escalating needs. The public hearing did not include a BOE vote; residents asked BET to seek budget alternatives and to time Riverside construction funding to avoid further delays.
