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Medfield superintendent lays out FY27 options that could reduce teaching staff; community urges tapping reserves or override
Summary
Superintendent presented FY27 projections and two budget scenarios (1.26% and 4.0% increases to be presented publicly), outlining proposed eliminations across buildings totaling several hundred thousand dollars per line and noting additional reductions still required; teachers and public commenters urged exploring reserves, overrides and alternative revenue such as school choice.
Superintendent Dr. Marston told the school committee that the district prepared a level-services FY27 budget (a 5.01% increase totaling $46,831,916) and two alternate scenarios after the warrant committee returned a smaller figure. The administration is preparing a 1.26% scenario and a 4.0% scenario to present at the Jan. 29 budget hearing; Dr. Marston said he still recommends a 5% level-service budget but will present a 4% recommended figure to the public.
He listed proposed staffing reductions to meet a roughly $1.7 million reduction target under the lower scenarios: eliminating 4.0 FTE at the high school (cited figure $351,476), about 3.88 FTE at Blake Middle School (approx. $323,271), 4.0 FTE at Dale Street (approx. $353,730), 3.4 FTE in a cluster at WeLock (approx. $301,941), and 1.0 FTE at Memorial (approx. $75,000). Dr. Marston said additional reductions (about $267,570) were still needed and that administrators were modeling impacts on class size, AP and elective offerings.
Teachers at the meeting and members of the public urged the committee to consider alternatives. High school teacher Morgan Reynolds said, "what benefits students most is a smaller classroom size and retaining staff who care about them" and asked for clearer itemized budgets. RISE lead teacher Megan Danielle Ski described the program as "created entirely by me" and warned it would be at particular risk if cuts proceed. Speakers and committee members urged exploring available free cash and timing of state Chapter 70 funds; a committee member noted that recent underestimation of revenue over four years exceeded $7 million, arguing the town should examine reserves and state-aid timing.
Committee members discussed options including athletic-fee increases, restoring tuition for full-day kindergarten, renegotiating special-education transportation, and preserving a literacy adoption the district expects to implement. The superintendent and committee repeatedly emphasized that additional details and the two budget scenarios will be made public at the Jan. 29 budget hearing and invited residents to engage with the warrant committee and select board on town-level decisions.
