by Marty Green ·
Friday, January 16, 2026
The School Committee, the Finance Committee, and the Select Board all gathered in the Bromfield School library Monday night, Jan. 12, to discuss the school budget, particularly in relation to the expected budget shortfall for fiscal 2027. “We thought it would be a really good idea to have all of us sitting together going through our school budget, working and discussing as they used to do in the old days,” School Committee Chair Abby Besse said.
The school budget approved by the School Committee for fiscal 2027 is 2.2% lower than this year’s. But the proposed request for school funding from the town is up slightly, by about 1.56%, or $258,000, because revenue from other sources has dropped.
School Committee member Brian Killeen explained the proposed school budget is down nearly $468,000 from last year. But income from outside sources is down even more sharply, by about $725,000. The largest drop is from the Devens account—the money MassDevelopment pays Harvard schools to educate students who live in Devens. That fund once had a substantial balance that carried over from year to year, but during the past decade, the account has been spent down for both capital projects and operating expenses, allowing the town to avoid some overrides. Other outside sources—such as state circuit-breaker funds and federal grants—are also down.
Rising utility costs (about $54,000) and higher bus transportation costs (about $42,000) are among the other factors expected to impact the schools’ fiscal 2027 budget.
Besse noted that school enrollments have declined statewide in the past decade, and Harvard is no exception. She said enrollment has dropped by 109 students since 2016. However, Besse said, “Enrollment alone doesn’t tell the full story, because today 25% of our students—about 250 kids—are classified as high needs, and this includes students with disabilities, English language learners, and/or low income students.” That figure, she said, has risen from 17% in 2016. “So fewer students doesn’t necessarily mean fewer needs,” she concluded.
Besse described the schools’ efforts to “right-size” the staffing in response to declining enrollment, while still meeting student needs. Eight full-time positions were eliminated for fiscal 2027, but two new staff members were added: an elementary reading specialist and a middle school special education teacher. Overall, the changes saved about $318,000.
Select Board member Eric Ward pointed out the proposed budget assumes the ongoing teachers’ contract negotiations will result in a 2% cost-of-living adjustment. He asked what would happen if the increase turned out to be larger. Mandy Ostaszewski, the school finance director, said each 0.5% would probably add about $100,000 to the school budget. And a later chart showed that nearby communities are reaching contracts with 3% or higher cost-of-living adjustments.
Finance Committee Chair Mike Derse asked about the rising costs of retirement benefits and health insurance, which are included in the budget for the town rather than in the school budget. Assistant Town Administrator Dawn Dunbar said those costs were expected to increase at least 15% in fiscal 2027.
Despite the difficult fiscal challenges facing Harvard, the tone of the meeting remained positive and collegial. Derse emphasized, “This is not a ‘schools versus town’ issue.” Later he pointed out, “Every single one of us has multiple kids in the schools.”
As the joint meeting concluded, School Committee member Liz Joyce remarked, “It feels very supportive and validating to all be around the table in person. So we should do it more often!” Everyone laughed at the idea of yet more meetings, but FinCom was scheduled to meet again the following day. (See story)