by Marty Green ·
Friday, December 12, 2025
At a time when costs for everything from houses to eggs seem to be rising, Harvard residents may be surprised that the total school budget proposed for fiscal 2027 is slightly less than this year’s budget. The literal bottom line of the 163-line budget spreadsheet, which school administrators presented to the School Committee Dec. 8, shows a proposed total budget of $20,825,428 in fiscal 2027. That is 2.2% lower than the $21,293,069 total budget for the current fiscal year 2026.
Budget totals do not tell the full story, however. Despite the smaller total budget, the schools will likely be seeking more from the town’s omnibus budget. Last spring, the town approved $16,594,033 for the schools in the omnibus budget. Under the proposed budget for fiscal 2027, that amount would rise to $16,852,074—an increase of 1.56%.
The explanation for that increase—in a smaller overall budget—lies in the different sources the schools rely on for money. While the largest share of school costs is paid each year by local taxpayers through the town’s omnibus budget, the school district also receives sizable yearly sums from other sources. Those funds show up in the budget as “offsets.” They include federal grants, state aid, tuition for preschool and full-day kindergarten, and much more. One of the largest offsets is the tuition MassDevelopment pays through its contract with the Harvard schools to educate children who live in Devens.
This year, offsets of $4,699,036 make up about 22% of the total school budget. But that amount is expected to drop by nearly $726,000 next year, to cover just 19% of the fiscal 2027 total budget. That is the smallest share to be provided by offsets since fiscal 2020.
Still, the 1.56% increase in the school omnibus request is well below the allowable amount that property taxes can increase without triggering the need for a Proposition 2 ½ override vote. And it is substantially smaller than the 6% increase in the school budget predicted by Finance Director Jared Mullane when he discussed Harvard’s possible deficit in the coming fiscal year.
In presenting the proposed budget to the School Committee, Superintendent Linda Dwight began by emphasizing that the focus is always on the students. She noted about 25% of Harvard’s current students are considered “high needs,” up from about 17% in 2016. As defined by the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, high-needs students belong to one or more of the following groups: those who come from low-income families; those who are just learning English; and those who have disabilities.
To meet the changing needs of students and their families, the schools have added several positions since 2016, including a reading coach, two counselors, and special education teachers at several grade levels. Dwight highlighted the value of providing in-district pathways for students with learning differences. For example, last year’s override funded a new special education teacher at a cost of $75,000. Dwight said as a result the district is saving $647,854 in out-of-district placement tuition and transportation costs.
In other areas, staff has been reduced since 2016. Since that year, enrollment has dropped by 123 students at Bromfield, while increasing slightly—by 14 students—at Hildreth Elementary School. With fewer students, Dwight said, teaching positions at Bromfield have been reduced over time, from five teachers per department to four at the high school level. The English department was the last to have five teachers, but it is being reduced to four for fiscal 2027.
Overall, staff is being reduced by five positions for fiscal 2027, with an estimated savings of $318,000. “These are hard decisions that impact people,” Dwight said, adding that administrators had met with those who were affected before the proposed changes were made public.
The School Committee took no vote on the budget at the Dec. 8 meeting, but members expect to vote at their next meeting.