South Hadley School Committee approves $27.5M FY27 budget before election

The School Committee discusses the proposed FY27 budget for South Hadley Public Schools.
Photo credit: SHCTV15

SOUTH HADLEY — Following some lamenting, the South Hadley School Committee approved a $27.5 million budget at its March 25 meeting.

That number, however, could change depending on the results of a critical tax override vote in a couple weeks.

Superintendent Jennifer Voyik shared a brief presentation with the committee to reiterate key points from a March 11 public hearing and presentation relating to the budget. The approved budget is about a $1.7 million, or a 6.71% increase from FY26.

South Hadley is a minimum aid district, along with more than 80% of the districts in Massachusetts, according to Voyik. This means the district receives $75 per student from Chapter 70 funding.

South Hadley will see an increase of $131,325 in Chapter 70 funding for FY27. Voyik stated, “As a minimum aid district and knowing all of the conversations we’ve had, 131,000 [dollars] would not support the needs of the school district.”

Voyik’s presentation also looked at the 10-year history of the town’s appropriation to the school budget. After receiving approximately $25.8 million from the town last year, the proposal shows that South Hadley Public Schools are set to receive about $26.2 million, a 2% increase from FY26.

On average, the district experiences a 2.46% increase from the town’s appropriation each year, but Voyik stated that, conservatively, a school district needs between 4% and 6% to be able to sustain services in the district. Budget drivers for the FY27 school budget include health insurance, utilities, positions moving from grants to the local budget, yellow bus transportation and contractual salary increases. Another budget driver is special education, including out-of-district placements, in-district positions and in-district contracted services.
There are 5.5 positions totaling $385,000 that are moving from grants to the local budget, according to Voyik.

With South Hadley residents set to vote on a potential tax override on April 14, Voyik broke down how each override option would impact the schools.

If the $9 million tax override option is approved, there would be a 6.71% increase in FY27 and a 3% increase to the school budget each year from FY28 to FY31. An $11 million override would include an increase of 6.71% in FY27 and a 4% increase each year from FY28 to FY31.

According to the Budget Task Force report that was submitted in February, a $9 million override would be raised over four years and produce “limited cuts” and a $2 million deficit in FY31. An $11 million override over five years would yield “few cuts” and a $1.5 million deficit in FY31. According to the report, an $11 million override would also be the closest thing to maintaining current service levels, barring any major cost impacts.

Voyik explained, “The $9 million and the $11 million override budget both have a starting budget and a recommended level service budget for FY27 of $27.5 [million]. That allows the district to move all of those salaries, add those new positions to keep them on the budget and not have any cuts.”

The FY26 budget is approximately $25.8 million. Before voting on the $27.5 million number, the committee voted 4-0 against an FY27 deficit budget of $26.7 million, or a 2% increase.

The passage of the deficit budget would have lead to severe cuts, including the reduction of 10 positions and four administrative assistant positions, the elimination of high school sports, the elimination of extracurricular activities at all schools, a reduction in electives, the elimination of middle school and high school music and the reduction/elimination in honors/AP classes.

School Committee Chair Eric Friesner stated, “I would be embarrassed to vote affirmatively for the deficit budget and send that to the town and say that we can run the schools on that.”

The School Committee also publicly endorsed the $11 million tax override option at a recent School Committee meeting. Friesner added that people need to go out and vote on April 14.

School Committee member Tracie Kennedy stated that if the deficit budget passed, South Hadley would be the only community in Massachusetts that does not offer athletics. “That is crazy to me,” she stated. “The majority of the girls’ basketball team that just won the championship are straight-A students who take AP classes, and I think about not just that group of students, but in that moment, it was so eye-opening, because we are taking everything from them. Everything. AP classes. We are taking their athletics, and that’s just unacceptable.”

The FY27 budget is still subject to change based on what happens during the town election on April 14, when residents will vote on one of the potential override options. The budget will also eventually go to Town Meeting in May. Voyik said in a past presentation that a math coach, ELA coach and 1.5 para-full-time equivalents will have to be reduced, no matter which budget option is approved.

The town has stated in the past that complications from increasing costs, such as health insurance, has caused this volatile budget situation.

All past presentations and documentation related to the FY27 budget can be found at the South Hadley Public Schools website, southhadleyschools.org, under the business page.