SPRINGFIELD — The School Department’s fiscal year 2026 budget is officially available on Springfield Public Schools’ website, and a public hearing on the matter is scheduled for April 30 at Roger L. Putnam Technical Academy at 5 p.m.
The proposed budget this year is right around $671 million, or a 7% increase from FY25.
“Springfield Public Schools budget for fiscal year 2026 reflects our unwavering belief in the potential of every student and our commitment to empowering them with the tools to achieve their dreams,” said Superintendent Sonia Dinnall, in her budget message. “This financial plan aligns with our mission to educate and empower — ensuring that all students graduate prepared for college, career and life success.”
In a preliminary budget presentation to the School Committee’s Budget and Finance Subcommittee on March 5, SPS Chief Financial and Operations Officer Patrick Roach said that the department wants the budget to reflect Dinnall’s four key principles: early literacy development, middle school transformation, college and career readiness and post-secondary success.
“We’re going to make sure … our resources are put towards making sure these priorities happen,” Roach said.
The budget’s revenues, according to Roach, include foundation inflation of 1.93% and funds from the Student Opportunity Act, which is a state-run program through the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education that provides funds to support student needs.
“As some of the [School] Committee members know, we’ve had the Student Opportunity Act, and we’re kind of winding to the end of it,” Roach said. “This is year five out of six years, so we have one more year after this year.”
As for charter schools in Springfield, Roach said in his presentation that there is an estimated 10.6% decrease in charter school reimbursements, and he does not project an increase in students going to the city’s charter schools.
He noted that enrollment is not only down in charter schools, but across the entire school district. This trend, however, is not unique to Springfield; many cities across the state and country are dealing with a similar realization, he said.
Based on regular enrollment studies done by SPS, a lack of housing and a decrease in births are two major reasons why they project a further decrease in enrollment across the city and state over time.
In the staffing department, Roach said salaries are expected to increase by $14.3 million, or 5.4%. That includes cost-of-living adjustments, collective bargaining agreements and about 49.5 positions that were added during the staffing allocation process, according to Roach.
As for other budget minutiae, around $104 million from the budget is expected to go toward charter schools and around $5.9 million will likely go to school choice.
Dinnall, who has touted SPS’s fiscal responsibility in the past, did so again within her budget summary.
“Springfield Public Schools operates with a deep sense of fiscal responsibility, ensuring that every dollar serves our students’ best interests,” Dinnall said. “With $48 million in school-based allocations across all funds, this budget places students at the center — where they belong.”
According to the School Department, the public can also access the school budget at all city library branches and at the SPS Central Office.
People can attend the public hearing on April 30 in person or via Zoom.
