Windsor Locks board adopts FY25 budget with staffing reductions as teachers warn of program strain

The Windsor Locks Board of Education on May 22 unanimously adopted its FY25 budget package, approving a list of reductions meant to align district spending with town funding while avoiding involuntary layoffs where possible.

Superintendent Shawn Parkhurst presented a revised recommended reduction list that included health-insurance savings tied to position reductions, cuts to teaching supplies, shifting a planned reduction from 2.0 WLMS ELA interventionists to 1.0, reducing flex general-education teaching lines (from 2.0 to 1.0 at North Street School) and restructuring art positions into two 0.75 full-time-equivalent roles shared between North and South elementary schools. The board approved the budget on a motion by Ms. Alba Osorio, seconded by Ms. L. Cutler; the motion passed unanimously.

Those measures, Parkhurst said, were intended to preserve essential services while making the budget sustainable. "This is a testament to the hard work of the Director of Facilities and his team," Parkhurst said earlier in the meeting when summarizing district accomplishments; he also urged continued community engagement.

But several South Elementary School teachers told the board during the public-comment portion that the approved reductions will be difficult to implement without eroding students' access to elective classes and specialist services. Teacher Megan Ellis said she feared her remarks would "fall on deaf ears" because the vote had already occurred and warned the staffing plan was fragile: "The district received a million dollars but it needs three million dollars," she said, arguing the district lacks sufficient resources to maintain current programs.

Colleagues echoed those concerns. Melissa Friend said losing positions from physical education to interventionists would be "very detrimental" to meeting whole-student needs, and art teacher Jennifer Long said sharing art and library teachers across two schools would make it hard to sustain offerings such as art shows and book fairs. Windsor Locks Teachers' Association President Matt Sigall thanked the board and administration for the budget work but warned of staff stress and the risk that experienced educators may seek employment elsewhere.

The board heard a detailed list of the changes in the "FY25 Budget Highlights" document and discussed timing and implementation before voting. The motion to adopt the FY25 budget with the presented reductions was made by Osorio and seconded by Cutler and passed unanimously.

Next steps: the district will implement the reductions for FY25 and staff and administrators will follow through on scheduling and coverage plans for shared specialist positions; the superintendent and board invited continued engagement from families and staff as implementation details are finalized.