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Whittier Tech project clears next administrative milestone toward MSBA eligibility
Summary
A district liaison said local leaders from 11 municipalities will sign a commitment letter required by the Massachusetts School Building Authority, advancing a proposed shared campus project with Northern Essex Community College toward a feasibility study expected in summer 2026.
Sean Ra., the district liaison on the Whittier Tech project, told the school committee that municipal leaders from all 11 sending communities will sign a commitment letter to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) on Monday, June 16, a step that will let the proposed shared campus move into state consideration. The letter, Ra. said, must be signed by mayors, select board chairs and town managers and is required by the MSBA by July 1.
The commitment letter makes three formal acknowledgments, Ra. explained: the creation of a new Whittier Tech regional school district agreement; local support for the district during the MSBA eligibility and feasibility study phase for two proposed sites (including the existing Whittier property); and that the district will pay for the feasibility study. "This is a significant moment in this process as we show unity among all the communities," Ra. said.
The liaison said a municipal working group of representatives from the 11 communities will meet immediately after the field signing to discuss next steps, site assessment updates and the project communications plan. Ra. told the committee the MSBA eligibility stage starts on August 1 and that the feasibility study is expected to begin in the summer of 2026 and will establish design and cost estimates for a proposed new technical high school and the shared campus partnership with Northern Essex Community College.
Superintendent Lynch and committee members asked for meeting dates and logistics; Ra. said the working group will set a summer meeting schedule at the Monday gathering and will circulate details afterward. Committee members were told a ceremonial presentation will take place on the Whittier football field and community and student representatives will attend.
Next steps, as described by Ra., are procedural within the MSBA timeline: successful presentation of the commitment letter and then MSBA consideration that could move the project into eligibility and later the feasibility phase. The committee did not take a formal vote on the campus project during the meeting; the liaison framed the signing as a required administrative milestone to preserve the district’s place in the MSBA process.
