EASTHAMPTON — More than 40 Easthampton Public School teachers and paraeducators could lose their jobs if the city’s proposed $6.9 million Proposition 2½ override fails on June 9, a potential loss that Superintendent Michelle Balch called “catastrophic.”
“We have the most caring, dedicated educators in this district,” Balch said at a School Committee meeting Tuesday. “When we’re talking about numbers, behind those numbers are students, staff, they’re lives, they’re who we are as a community and I know that.”
Balch outlined the district’s approach ahead of the override vote. Administrators developed two scenarios for next year’s proposed $24.9 million, level-service school budget: if the override fails, the district would cut about $2.77 million; if it passes, cuts would total about $922,000, she said.
Both scenarios would result in the loss of educators and some extracurricular activities, but Balch said the consequences would be far more severe if the override fails.
“This is unprecedented time,” Balch said. “We have to plan and prepare for both scenarios.”
Of the $2.7 million that would be cut if the override fails, $2.5 million would be in personnel expenses. Of the district’s roughly 255 employees, 155 are educators who work directly with students. With enrollment numbers including special education students still shifting, Balch said the specific number of educators that would be lost is unclear under both scenarios.
Walter Baker, president of the Easthampton High School Student Council, said that programs, electives, clubs, athletics, arts, music and other enrichment programs would face major cuts or complete elimination.
“While those things may sometimes be labeled as ‘nonessential,’ I can tell you that as a student, they’re absolutely essential to the experience that students have in our schools,” Baker said at Tuesday’s meeting.
Several educators, parents and students like Baker made their opinion on the override clear at the meeting, with many asking residents to vote “yes.”
“If an override is not passed, it will be a catastrophe,” said Jason Rodriguez, an Easthampton paraeducator. “The right to a quality education is not a privilege, it is a universal principle. Therefore, I’m asking everybody who is listening to vote ‘yes’ for the override.”
Erin Ferris, a special education teacher who started working in the district last year, is proud to call Easthampton home, after moving to the area five years ago from Virginia.
“These kids have changed my life,” Ferris said emotionally during in-person comments. “Even though I don’t live in Easthampton, it’s my chosen place. It’s such a good community and I want to be able to continue to do the good work that I didn’t know I was supposed to be doing.”
The specifics of each budget scenario will be presented at the May 26 School Committee meeting. Until then, Balch said the administration will assemble budgets for both outcomes, even though the timeline is tight and there are still moving parts.
Balch and School Committee Chair Laura Scott said the district has already cut every possible expense — including items as small as a few thousand dollars for training programs — while trying to avoid reductions to staff and legally required services.
“Literally anything that we can cut that saves a salary or saves a position or saves an academic program has been cut,” Scott said. “When we look to $2.77 million, we have no other choice.”
Balch presented three different options to the School Committee showing the routes administration are considering to make staffing reductions.
Option A, the avenue that Balch said the district is pursuing, will notify educators who do not qualify for professional teaching status — a state qualification for educators who have worked for at least three consecutive years in the district — that their contract will not be renewed next year. There are approximately 40 educators in the district that do not have this status.
The notification would be sent on Friday, May 15. If the override passes, Balch said as many of these teachers that can be retained would then be notified of “reasonable assurance” that their contract will be renewed.
Option B includes a mix of notifying educators of non-renewal and a reduction in forces based on areas of need and required programming. Option C would reduce forces based on seniority and legally-obligated programming.
Balch said that Option A is the most “legally and contractually” clear, with several School Committee members agreeing. She wants to let teachers know their job status as early as possible, if they plan to file for unemployment or look for jobs elsewhere.
School Committee member Sam Hunter said he has heard Easthampton residents question why the city is not proposing a “middle option” for the override, one lesser than the $6.9 million. With city officials saying that an $8.5 million override is a more realistic amount to fill Easthampton’s deficit, Hunter said the $6.9 million override is that option.
“This is the middle option,” Hunter said. “Offering a middle option in other communities did not work … this is the compromise. We’re cutting $900,000 from the school budget (if the override passes) and honestly I’m angry about that.”
As for the city’s full budget, the City Council’s Finance Subcommittee is holding a total of five budget hearings — the final one will be on June 1 — until the special city election on June 9, focusing on different city departments. The full City Council plans to finalize the budget at its June 17 meeting, after the election.
