On March 2, the School Committee, including Mayor Marc Laredo, met with Superintendent Anna Nolin and NPS Chief Financial and Administrative Officer Liam Hurley in a public but unrecorded budget meeting at the Education Center. The meeting was also attended by Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education Ayesha Farag and observed by Newton Teachers Association President Michael Zilles, NTA Second Release Officer Ryan Normandin, Fig City News, and one member of the public.
The discussion centered on a 41-page presentation from Dr. Nolin and Mr. Hurley that consisted of:
- A summary of system efficiencies and cost reductions achieved and anticipated from 2026-2030,
- Various district cost metric comparisons with other Massachusetts school districts, and
- Most significantly, a Fiscal Year 2027 (September 2026 – June 2027 school year) forecast with budget requests from NPS.
Important context for the presentation was contained in a February 25 memorandum from NPS to the Committee, which reported that in the current school year, NPS is running at a financial deficit, most significantly due to higher-than-forecasted costs for substitute teachers and more students moving into Newton who require Individualized Education Program (IEP) aides. This year’s deficit has resulted in a hiring freeze (except for IEP aides as required by law) and a spending slowdown announced to NPS staff on February 11.
The dialog and materials in the March 2 meeting showed that the City has indicated an FY 2027 budget allocation to NPS of $314.8 million — a relatively large increase, compared with recent prior years — representing 5.75% over FY 2026. However, this $314.8 million is $2.5 million below the $317.3 million FY 2027 allocation that NPS is presently stating is required to continue this year’s level of services next year. If Dr. Nolin’s “Bridge to Thrive” educational improvement initiatives for FY 2027 were implemented, the total budget forecast would rise to $321.2 million.
These improvement initiatives are listed on page 31 of the presentation, and they notably include funding for:
- Eight middle school specialists for the new “Pathways” math curriculum that was unveiled at the February 2 School Committee meeting,
- Additional teaching support and reading interventionists, and
- Special education resources for the Reflections and Bridge programs.
Dr. Nolin noted that funding the full $321.2 million amount would represent an increase of 8.0% year-over-year and therefore was not a realistic request for NPS to make.
The Committee’s discussion made apparent that the $314.8 million indicated allocation from the City was calculated prior to the recent full knowledge of inflationary pressures on NPS, and it was therefore made on the assumption that amount would be sufficient for some FY 2027 improvement initiatives, including the well-publicized math Pathways. Higher employee benefit costs, out-of-district student placement costs, and — to a lesser extent – energy costs are among the important cost drivers listed on slide 24 of the March 2 presentation.
Slides 36-39 contain Dr. Nolin’s compilation of various options, including certain cuts and redeployment of resources, to bridge the gap between $314.8 million and the cost of desired services. At this meeting, however, she did not give the Committee a specific recommendation for which budget-fixing options to implement.
The discussion between the Mayor and the other Committee members indicated a need to demonstrate to all Newton residents that NPS is striving for spending efficiencies, and that educator staffing levels are matching enrollment levels that are stable-to-slightly-declining. Dr. Nolin confirmed that the FY 2027 forecast contained a further reduction of seven elementary school full-time employees (FTEs) due to reduced enrollment (two of which would be redeployed to middle schools), in addition to the 10 FTEs downsized last year. Committee member Victor Lee (Ward 8) raised the possibility of an override, but even if one were launched immediately, it would not conclude in time to affect the FY 2027 budget, which must be finalized this spring.
Fig City News covered the analogous School Committee budget workshop one year ago, and the tone this year was calmer, with a clearer understanding of the numbers, though it still contained consternation over rising expenses squeezing the district’s ability to fund new initiatives. School Committee Chair Alicia Piedalue noted the “incredibly generous offer on the table,” alluding to the City’s indicated budget increase of 5.75% for NPS, while Mayor Laredo said that Superintendent Nolin, Chair Alicia Piedalue, and Vice Chair Jason Bhardwaj “engaged in tremendous back-and-forth” in the budget discussions prior to the meeting. Given the current budget gap, however, it remains to be seen if this spring’s NPS budget process will approach the public rancor Newton witnessed last year.
