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Easton Board of Finance approves $300,000 cut to Board of Education budget; overall town budget still up about 7.18%
Summary
At a March 25 special meeting the Easton Board of Finance voted 6-0 to reduce the Board of Education budget by $300,000 as it finalizes recommendations for the April 27 Annual Town Meeting; the cuts produce a projected 7.18% overall budget increase, board members said.
At a special meeting March 25 at the Easton Senior Center, the Town of Easton Board of Finance voted 6-0 to reduce the Board of Education (BOE) budget by $300,000 as it prepared final budget recommendations to present at the April 27 Annual Town Meeting. Chair Art Laske called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m.
Finance staffers presented several options for BOE reductions and the savings associated with them. Devon Wible and Treasurer and Finance Director Jason McKinnon outlined proposals that would affect programs and staffing choices, including services for gifted students, activities at Helen Keller Middle School (HKMS), routine maintenance lines, Spanish instruction at SSES, the number of kindergarten sections and a Grade 5 band at SSES. The board discussed the classroom and staffing implications of each option and how combinations of cuts change the savings picture.
Board members and district officials also talked about central office staffing, teacher salaries, special-education busing and class-size trade-offs tied to different reduction scenarios. ER9 Director of Facilities and Operations Mike D'Agostino and ER9 Superintendent and Board of Education Chair Sara Scrofani told the board they expect roughly $59,000 from the state DRIP program; that amount was not included in the BOE budget figures under consideration. Chair Laske noted that a newly established separate Maintenance and Repair line item of $250,000 was not part of the BOE-cut discussion.
During discussion, alternate member David Wheatley asked whether the district could fully insure medical coverage privately rather than via the state; the board agreed to table consideration of that option for a later meeting. Ira Kaplan, BOF clerk, said he will also pursue whether returning unspent Park & Recreation funds or trimming the Town Clerk budget could yield further reductions. Kaplan relayed a suggestion from Scrofani that the board consider the reserve-handling approach used by Redding’s finance director for BOE medical insurance funds; that approach keeps designated reserves within the general fund to seek a competitive yield.
After surveying members, Chair Laske recommended a $300,000 reduction to the BOE budget. Colin Cote moved the reduction; Ira Kaplan seconded. The motion passed unanimously, 6-0. Following a brief recess, Selectman Chris Calvert reported that the adopted BOE cuts would result in an overall town budget increase of 7.18 percent and noted that an additional $85,000 in reductions would move the figure to roughly 7.00 percent.
The board agreed to cancel a planned March 26 special meeting and to finalize the budget at its regular April 7, 2026 meeting. A motion to adjourn by Josh Bailey, seconded by Colin Cote, passed 6-0. The Board of Finance will present its recommendations at the Annual Town Meeting on April 27, 2026.
