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Finance committee forwards 2026–27 budget proposal, citing 5.58% increase and 7% health premium rise
Summary
The Preston Public Schools Board of Education Finance Committee voted Feb. 12 to send the FY 2026–2027 budget proposal — a 5.58% increase over last year — to the full board after discussion of a negotiated 7% healthcare premium rise and staffing allocations for ESY and summer programs.
BOE Finance Committee Chair Kelly McNamara said the committee moved at its Feb. 12 meeting to send the proposed FY 2026–2027 budget to the full Board of Education for consideration at a special meeting Feb. 23.
Superintendent Dr. Seitsinger said the district's insurance broker negotiated projected healthcare premium increases down to 7 percent for FY 2026–2027, and that other changes including student-count adjustments produce a proposed budget that represents a 5.58 percent increase over FY 2025–2026. Dr. Seitsinger reviewed a list of "acceptable risks" and targeted reductions developed over the past three weeks with the finance committee and administration; he said those options could be advanced to the full BOE if further cuts are required.
Committee members questioned staffing and stipend items in the draft budget. McNamara asked how $37,000 budgeted for Schoolwide Summer Support Staff is allocated; Dr. Seitsinger said approximately $25,000 is earmarked for Extended School Year (ESY) services and the remaining roughly $12,000 is for a general-education Summer Voyages program run in partnership with Mystic Seaport. Thomas Wright, the BOF liaison, asked whether eliminating a proposed Assistant Athletic Director stipend should prompt reductions in assistant coaching positions; Dr. Seitsinger replied that assistant coaches help maintain safe practice opportunities by lowering student-to-coach ratios.
Wright also inquired about a Social Media stipend included in the draft; Dr. Seitsinger clarified that the stipend is a proposed addition and is not yet an official contracted position. BOE Chair Courtney Ennis asked whether a $17,000 increase in stipend positions represents contractual obligations; Wright requested that stipend positions not covered by the collective bargaining unit be marked with an asterisk in documentation to clarify status.
At 7:09 PM, BOE Chair Courtney Ennis called for a vote to move the budget with the committee's current proposals to the full BOE at a special meeting Feb. 23, 2026. The motion carried with two in favor, none opposed, and one abstention. A motion to adjourn was made by BOE Finance Committee Chair Kelly McNamara, seconded by Courtney Ennis, and the committee adjourned at 7:10 PM. The committee scheduled its next meeting for March 5, 2026.
