Braintree may close an elementary school amid budget cuts

BRAINTREE – The school staff cuts range from a high school hall monitor to an elementary school principal, 100 positions in all.

Fees for playing school sports and riding school buses would double.

And Highlands Elementary School would close, with the remaining schools to undergo redistricting.

Those are among the $8 million in cuts required to hold the current school budget of $75.5 million for the 2024-25 year. School Superintendent James Lee has said that $83.5 million would be needed to maintain present school programs for another year.

At Monday's school committee meeting, Lee also outlined the cuts in the secondary schools needed to cut $8 million from the school budget.

A total of 21 teaching jobs would be eliminated at the two middle schools, and another 28 at high school. Adding the 28 teachers that would be cut at the elementary level, a total of 77 teachers would be cut systemwide. The system currently has a total of 412 teachers.

The cuts will bring larger class sizes and reductions in course offerings, he said.

Where will Highlands students go?

Lee said there are two potential plans for Highlands students.

One would transfer them to the Liberty and Hollis schools.

The other is a game of dominoes. It would move both students from Highlands and Liberty Schools into the old South Middle School, which is now undergoing renovation to become an early childhood center. The early childhood center would move into the Liberty School.

In the latter case, the superintendent said the town would have to repay the state School Building Authority the money it gave the town for roof repairs at the Highlands. Lee said he will send a letter to the School Building Authority asking what actions the town could expect. He said it could harm efforts to obtain state money to renovate or replace Braintree High School.

Lee said he supports none of the reductions., saying that they would "dismantle the school system."

School committee member Rachel Horak said "the scale and scope is just bonkers."

School committee member Kathleen Tuffy said. "Braintree is placing a burden on young families," referring to the increase in sports and bus fees and the fact that Braintree charges tuition for its full-day kindergarten program.

Lee also presented the committee with an alternative budget of $79.2 million, an increase of 4.9% instead of holding the current school budget of $75.5 million. This plan would result in the elimination of 41.5 jobs.

The Highlands School would close under both plans, and the fee increases would remain. Class size increases would be smaller, as would be reductions in programs in art, music, world languages and physical education. Reading and math specialists would be retained in the elementary schools.

"This is trying to get back as many people as possible," Lee said of the alternative plan. "This is painful, but nowhere near as bad."

What is in the requested school budget increase?

Of the $8 million budget increase the schools are seeking, $5.2 million is for contractual pay raises, $1.5 million for increased special education costs, $800,000 to cover general cost increases and $400,000 for higher transportation costs.

School committee Chair Lisa Fiske Heger said she thought an $83.5 million budget is unattainable.

She urged the other committee members to adopt a budget for "whatever we think we can live with."

Ultimately, whatever budget the committee approves will be just a recommendation. Mayor Erin Joyce can include a different amount in the budget she submits to the town council on April 30. The council can only reduce the budget, they cannot increase any spending.

Will there be an override vote?

For an hour at the start of the meeting, teachers, residents, students and recent graduates spoke, most calling on the mayor to seek a Proposition 2½ override to voters to provide additional money for the schools, some calling on the committee to adopt a budget without the cuts.

Braintree has never voted to have an override.

Joyce said she has not decided whether to see an override, saying she is still working on what the impact would be of $10 million in cuts to departmental budget requests should be. She said that any override must be part of a long-term plan for the town's financial stability.

The school committee will hold a public hearing on the budget proposal at 6:30 p.m. Monday in the Cahill Auditorium of town hall.

More: Braintree facing cuts, possibly layoffs and even a tax override

Reach Fred Hanson at fhanson@patriotledger.com.

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This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Closing elementary school considered in Braintree, MA