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Educators tell state board budget-driven layoffs are crippling schools
Summary
Union leaders and local education officials told the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education that widespread staff cuts and enrollment declines are forcing program reductions, threatening special education and literacy efforts, and require state action on funding and policy.
Educators and union leaders used public comment at the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education meeting in Hudson to warn that staffing losses and enrollment shifts are already harming students and will worsen without state intervention.
"Massachusetts cannot afford to weaken MCAS," said Andrea Wolf, President and CEO of Mass Insight Education and Research, urging the board to retain objective assessments and end-of-course measures that validate rigorous coursework and inform families. Wolf said recent changes correlated with lower 10th-grade MCAS participation and scores.
Sarah Wilford, director of education policy for AFT Massachusetts, described Lynn Public Schools’ enrollment loss of more than 400 students — about 300 multilingual learners — and said the drop translates into an estimated $7 million reduction in state aid that has already led to staff cuts and unfilled positions. "Schools should be safe places for all students," Wilford said, urging the board to advocate for funding that stabilizes districts serving immigrant families.
Max Page, president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association, told the board his union has documented over 1,400 educator jobs lost or at risk statewide and urged the board to press for a foundation budget review commission to address long-term funding shortfalls. "Money matters in public education," Page said, calling on the board to publicly oppose broad tax-cut initiatives and federal voucher efforts that would further shrink resources.
Local union leaders from Framingham and Brockton echoed those concerns. Christine Mulroney, president of the Framingham Teachers Association, warned that proposed seclusion and timeout regulation changes will increase staffing and training needs just as districts face layoffs, and she pressed DESE to link regulation changes to advocacy for the necessary funding.
Brockton officials said their district faces deep cuts despite state Chapter 70 increases; Kim Gibson, president of the Brockton Education Association, reported expected losses of more than 60 ESP positions and roughly 40 teachers and urged the board to press the legislature on municipal charge-backs and funding formula reform. Stacy McDonough, president of Brockton Educational Support Professionals Association, said her bargaining unit would lose 63 ESP positions and that reductions in ESPs, special education staff and ESL supports will undercut literacy and special education goals.
The board did not take formal votes on funding during the meeting, but several members asked DESE staff how research and targeted grants could be used to guide policy decisions. The board approved routine minutes later in the agenda and moved to other items.
