Residents and educators urge Board of Finance to fully fund Bristol schools as cuts bite

Public commenters pressed the Board of Finance on April 1 to fully fund the Bristol School District, saying repeated cuts have eliminated staff and shifted dollars from classrooms to legal and compliance costs.

"We cut 52 positions," resident Shelby Ponds told the board, describing a pattern of annual shortfalls she characterized as a recurring $10,000,000 structural deficit that forces painful reductions. "If you ask us to cut $10,000,000, we're not cutting $10,000,000. We don't have the authority. We don't generate taxes. We have mandates that require us to educate kids." (Shelby Ponds)

Kara Ledger, another resident, said the district has been flat-funded for years and cited the board’s current operating deficit. "Flat funding has forced deficit spending year after year, including $3,400,000 deficit this year alone," Ledger said, and warned that cutting special-education staff does not produce savings but increases legal and out-of-district costs.

Maria Simmons, who identified herself as an educator and a Board of Education commissioner, said recent cuts were “detrimental to students” and urged the finance board to identify and address structural deficits rather than accept a narrative of mismanagement. "Our school system is not overspending. It's systematically underfunded," Simmons said.

Mike Reynolds, president of the Bristol Federation of Teachers and a 28-year district teacher, urged approval of the superintendent’s full budget. "Superintendent White and her team have worked tirelessly and collaboratively," Reynolds said. He challenged finance board members to substitute teach to grasp classroom realities and said prior position cuts had deep effects on staff and students.

Why it matters: Speakers testified that prior reductions removed dozens of roles and essential supports—paraeducators, counselors and special-education staff—shifting costs to outside placements and legal exposure. Those changes, commenters said, reduce educational quality and threaten the city’s ability to retain educators and families.

What the board heard from staff: Comptroller Diane’s presentation later in the meeting acknowledged rising special-education expenses and said the Board of Education’s original FY27 request totaled about $154 million; staff recommended $10,575,000 in reductions to present a proposed BOE budget of roughly $144,074,000. Diane noted the overall city proposal is approximately $261,000 over the statutory spending cap and outlined reserves and contingency options to narrow the gap.

Next steps: The Board of Finance scheduled follow-up workshops and tentative adoption dates for late April and May. Public speakers urged that any further deliberations include detailed, line-by-line review of personnel versus nonpersonnel costs and a commitment to preserve mandated services.

Ending: The board did not take a formal vote on the school budget at the April 1 meeting; members said they would reconvene in workshop sessions to revisit proposed cuts, contingency uses and options for addressing the spending-cap exposure.