The Plympton School Committee confronted a $213,000 budget deficit for the current fiscal year during its meeting Monday night, Oct. 28, prompting an immediate budget freeze and discussions on how to address the shortfall.
The deficit, primarily at-tributed to unexpected special education costs, caught committee members off guard and led to a tense discussion about potential cuts and funding sources.
“This is the third year in a row we’ve had over-runs, so I think that we’re extremely sensitive to that,” said Committee Chair Jason Fra-ser. “This is 5% more to our budget after we’ve already gone to the town voters and asked them to support a certain level.”
Sarah Hickey, the district’s Director of Finance and Operations, explained that the deficit stems from new out-of-district placements and additional support services for students with complex needs. These costs were not anticipated when the budget was approved earlier this year.
“Plympton has had a new out-of-district placement. Plympton has a student that was identified as needing a one-to-one paraprofessional,” Hickey said. “The substitute line was cut and there are a number of long-term absences, so we have long-term subs in for a number of teachers.”
The committee voted unanimously to implement an immediate budget freeze to prevent further overspending. However, members acknowledged that the freeze alone would not be sufficient to close the gap.
“A budget freeze isn’t going to fix this,” said Jon Wilhelmsen, Vice Chair of the Committee. “We’re going to have to figure out a way to get that information so we can have a way to discuss with the town so that the town can make a decision about how they want to deal with this.”
One potential source of funds discussed was the district’s special education re-serve fund, which currently holds about $50,000. The committee also considered using federal grant money to offset some costs, though concerns were raised about the legality of such a move.
Peter Veneto, principal of Dennett Elementary School, expressed concern about the impact of potential cuts on staffing and programs. “After losing a full-time aid last year, if we had to take this step, that would be very difficult to man-age,” he said.
The committee plans to create a prioritized list of potential cuts, ranging from de-laying equipment purchases to more severe staffing reductions. Fraser emphasized the need for transparency in this process.
“I think we literally need
a list from $263,000 down to zero from the least painful to the most painful decisions that may have to occur for us to cover the total hole on our own,” Fraser said.
Committee members stressed the importance of working with town officials to find a solution. They plan to schedule a joint meeting with the Finance Committee and Town Administrator to discuss the situation and explore potential funding options.
“I think we’ll be able to work with the town in order to deal with this,” Wilhelmsen said. “I think the town does recognize that this school and all of the folks that work here do a tremendous amount and do it very efficiently.”