South Hadley School Committee advocates for a September tax override vote

The School Committee drafts a statement for the town and Selectboard to show their support for a tax override vote to take place in September.
Photo credit: SHCTV15

SOUTH HADLEY – With the Selectboard mulling over the idea of hosting another special election, the School Committee decided to advocate for an override vote in September during its July 6 meeting.

Over the past few Selectboard meetings, the board has discussed potential dates to host another tax override vote, including a special election on Tuesday, Sept. 1.

During the May 5 Selectboard meeting, Town Administrator Lisa Wong presented the board with potential dates for a tax override vote: Sept. 1, Nov. 3 or April 13, 2027.

The Selectboard voted that they prefer the Sept. 1 date, but they have until July 27 to make it official. No official vote has been taken as of press time.

With the potential for another tax override, the School Committee and Superintendent Jennifer Voyik discussed different projected budgets for fiscal year 2028.

Voyik said that the school district could assume that no override would give the School Department approximately a maximum 1% increase from FY27 to FY28, which would mean South Hadley Public Schools’ FY28 budget would total $26.5 million.

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After Town Meeting approved $1.2 million in free cash to fund the gap and save some city services in the FY27 school budget, the schools’ operating budget for FY27 increased to $27.8 million.

Voyik said the projected budget from FY27 to FY28 would be approximately $1.3 million less, but she further stated that the deficit could be $2-2.25 million due to contractual increases, without an override.

She also explained that without an override, the district would once again be looking at the loss of programs and positions that include no high school sports, no extracurricular activities, no electives, no middle school and high school music, and no honors/AP classes.

Voyik also said School Choice and families leaving the district are something the district will have to monitor due to the uncertainty of next year’s budget. She also noted that she would rather a potential tax override vote take place in September, so families can plan sooner before next year’s budget discussions.

South Hadley hosted its tax override vote on April 14, and the residents chose not to support the $9 million and $11 million tax override options.

“The vote wasn’t until April. There were families that already visited schools, already decided to leave. So, no matter what we do, we’re already going to see a dip in the next year,” Voyik stated. “I think if we don’t know sooner rather than later what next year is going to look like, I think we’re going to have the same thing happen a year from now.”

Voyik also said it will be easier if the vote is in September so that the district can make one budget instead of multiple budgets due to possible outcomes and scenarios.

School Committee Chair Eric Friesner stated that he thinks the schools could benefit from an override and proposed that a statement be sent to the Selectboard.

“I would prefer more longevity, but I think that certainly for FY28, we should level service fund the schools so that we’re not looking at cuts again,” Friesner stated. “I think that we need to have a plan moving forward for the four positions that we’ve added with that strategic $300,000 investment.”

Ultimately, the committee decided to send the statement to the Selectboard, which read, “The South Hadley School Committee respectfully asks the Selectboard to support placing a Proposition 2 ½ override before the voters on Sept. 1. This override would be used to fund a level service budget for the FY28 school budget. Without an override, the district would be facing at least a $2 million deficit before accounting for any contractual increases. This would create a significant gap between the funding available and the cost of maintaining current services for students.”

It continued, “We also ask the town to consider at a future time if and how to continue funding four additional positions strategically funded for FY27 using free cash. These positions were added to help slow the loss of funding connected to students leaving South Hadley Public Schools for School Choice and charter options. We suggest that this topic be discussed at a full tri-board meeting during [the] upcoming budget season.”
The School Committee voted to send this statement to the Selectboard for its next meeting on July 14.