Ep. 81, Last Night @ School Committee: 3/15 Meeting Recap

Last Night At School Committee

Last night’s meeting began with a one-hour budget hearing, followed by a lengthy discussion of three main topics: budget, transportation, and school mergers. Superintendent Skipper began her report with an overview of a new organizational chart for BPS, increasing the number of department chiefs reporting to three deputy superintendents. School Committee members raised questions about the number of new positions created and how the Central Office will fill these on top of existing vacancies.

The first of three three main reports last night was an updated budget for the next fiscal year. This updated budget comes after three budget hearings over the last month, and it included additional funding for collective bargaining agreements with several unions. Committee members expressed concerns about the looming fiscal cliff after federal ESSER relief money runs out, given the addition of a substantial number of new positions paired with a continued decline in enrollment. The Committee will bring this budget to a vote next week.

The second report last night was on the district’s new contract with its bus management company. The Superintendent’s team presented its 5-year contract proposal with current vendor Transdev and explained the bidding process that resulted in only one bidder. As the district continues to face significant shortcomings with its transportation system, the Superintendent’s team reiterated that the new contract is structured to incentivize key improvements. Each Committee member pressed the Superintendent on issues ranging from why only one bid was received, to the status of discussions with Lyft about providing alternative transportation, to how the district will address the underlying complexities of its transportation system.

The third and final report of the night was a presentation on a statement of interest to the Massachusetts School Building Authority requesting funding for a new building to merge the Shaw and Taylor Schools. This comes as the district continues to audit school buildings as part of the “Green New Deal” planning process. BPS leaders noted that the current Shaw and Taylor facilities have not yet been audited, and there is not yet a plan in place for what to do with those facilities after completion of the new building. Members expressed concerns about moving forward with this request while the Horace Mann School for the Deaf and the Blackstone School communities currently lack adequate facilities, and members called into question the timing of this announcement while a master facilities plan is still under active development.

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