The Budget Subcommittee for the Mattapoisett School District met on December 10 to discuss the fiscal year 2022 budget.
Mattapoisett School Committee Chairman Jim Muse and committee member Shannon Finning attended the meeting, along with Old Rochester Regional Superintendent of Schools Mike Nelson, ORR Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations Howie Barber, Mattapoisett Schools Principal Rose Bowman, ORR Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Janell Pearson-Campbell, and ORR Director of Student Services Craig Davidson.
Acknowledging the new faces at ORR’s Central Office, Nelson explained how most school districts are concerned about enrollment and its impact on Chapter 70 funding and the challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Specific to ORR, he said the school district is in Year 3 of its 2023 strategic plan and that this is a negotiation year with teachers.
Barber said he expects budgetary hardships given the tone of state-level information coming down. Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, ORR is taking an “all funds budget approach” based upon high components and then some strategies.
Muse said that Mattapoisett schools receive capital funds from the town, but those are not guaranteed. “It has been a means of providing necessary funding for necessary things,” he said, specifically health insurance premiums, something he considers a “big piece of the upcoming conversation,” even though he said the town provides insurance.
Finning, remarking from a taxpayer’s perspective and thinking about the town’s assessment, thought families should ask budget makers how they would address the gap in literacy. “I’m aware of many who withdrew their children for parochial schools. Are we going to reach out to them?” she asked. “Class size was a big driver on why we chose Mattapoisett— Mrs. Bowman and class size.”
Barber said he reviewed the school buildings with ORR Facilities Director Gene Jones and, with a new presidency, he said he anticipates potential extensions to be granted. “We don’t even know what our Chapter 70 [funding is] going to be,” he said.
“We’re all very cognizant of the fact the resources from the town next year might be different,” said Bowman. She said the only anticipated faculty change is a retiring teacher at Center School.
Kindergarten enrollment for the 2021-22 academic year will be determined in February, said Bowman. The 48-50 number that entered kindergarten over the last few years is stabilizing with three sections of 18-22 children per room. Bowman said some parochial students’ families have indicated their children will be back in Mattapoisett schools.
Citing 10 students who registered for Grade 2 during the summer, Bowman said, “So, unusual things happen.” She expressed gratitude that the town has put curriculum on a separate line item and has purchased “Go Math” covers for Grades 2-6. The schools are saving money on paper products, thanks to Chromebooks.
Addressing the gap in literacy, Bowman said Grades 1 and 2 were her concern. “Leaning on the consistency of the teachers and the AIMSweb (Achievement Improvement Monitoring System) … I’m confident we’re going to be able to know what areas of math and reading we need to focus on,” she said.
The student population per grade ranges between 49 and 55 students, except for Grade 2 entering Grade 3 next year.
Bowman said that the town has been generous with capital funding. She added that faculty had learned a great deal about technology for each grade level. “I have been careful about asking people for things that will be too big a stretch,” she said.
Pearson-Campbell told the meeting that she had sent a document with initiatives and a look at software packages and added how much she enjoyed listening to Bowman’s report.
Davidson said he would be working with Bowman and Associate Principal Kevin Tavares to focus on individual students and needs, identify trends in learning profiles, and determine what interventions are needed.
Barber said he would like to unify the software and learning platforms to be the same in all Tri-Town elementary schools. He intends to meet this month with Mattapoisett Town Administrator Mike Lorenco and the Tri-Town’s other town administrators. “That will allow us to propose the budget more clearly,” he said. “We want to keep a unified perspective.”
Barber’s goals are to propose a budget to the School Committee in January 2021, have a budget hearing in February, and meet by March 29 to finalize, clarify, and prepare the budget for the Annual Town Meeting.
Barber said he estimates a weekly budget meeting over the next six weeks to complete the budget process efficiently. The next two weeks would include a lot of discussion and, pending what the governor says, the fourth and fifth weeks might not require a meeting.
Muse said he is okay with weekly meetings, but that Barber should not need to report weekly, especially if a committee meeting is already scheduled.
“The pandemic, it hits people hard and hits people with different abilities harder…. We don’t know when this is going to be over,” said Muse. “One of the fears I have is district placements are going to start to decrease. We can’t support them. This may mean some short-term investments. I want Mr. Davidson to know and to bring that to his attention, and these are not resources that should not be fought for.” Muse said he hopes Davidson will continue to look for the resources to keep ORR a truly inclusive district.
Finning said she is available every week and willing to make the budget subcommittee a priority and said “engagement is extra important” for the Board of Selectmen.
Barber agreed.
From a historical perspective, Muse said that members of the Finance Committee have sat on the Budget Subcommittee and that the Board of Selectmen has relied on the Finance Committee for updates. “We do need and want the support of the selectmen. That normally has occurred because we’ve had open dialogues with the town administrator as well as the Finance Committee,” he said.
Having helped prepare budgets for many years, Bowman said, “It’s been an outstanding process to have somebody from the Finance [Committee] to be with us [providing a] clear dialogue from the Finance [Committee] to the selectmen. Mr. Lorenco is now the town administrator, but the huge difference for us has been that the town has supported curriculum.”
Nelson said he would share the budget with the Finance Committee and intends to meet with Barber and Lorenco to make the budget process “transparent, but, more importantly, thorough.”
ORR Central Office Executive Assistant Diana Russo will take the lead on scheduling further Budget Subcommittee meetings.
Mattapoisett School Committee
By Mick Colageo