That's literally the conversation they have with us because the excise tax went up. Right. >> Howard just said it. There wasn't a lot of building in town so there's no growth. So the freak like that's how they calculate what they have for growth. if you build new houses, but the towns are so small, they don't have that. And like I said, like I know Boilston has the FedEx and but there's that one little road. Look at Shbury. Look at Holden. Look at like they have multiple roads with all that growth and commercial development. We don't have that. >> You got to look at an override, but you got to be talking about it now for next year. You really do. I mean, no one wants to have that conversation because they both told >> Yeah, we talked about we're going to need an override, but we Boilston just did a debt exclusion and people's taxes went up.
So, I just don't personally think within the next year or two or three or four Boilston is going to pass another because that's a that was a massive tax increase. >> Then we shouldn't be adding anything from the priority list. We should be cutting >> a lot of quickly if I can make one last point. My son, the ultimate nerd, Tanto graduate, um an urban economist is his major at the Grand School of William. these towns, towns like this across America, but our towns in particular, it's going to get worse and worse and worse for them. Money problems are going to grow over time. So, we think we got it hard now. Wait three years. >> Yeah. And it really there's no commercial to your point. >> Yeah. There's very little growth in terms of housing because you know in Berlin we all got to have our two acres >> and it looks beautiful but it makes your job >> it's a bigger problem right that we can't that again we have to have conversations with with with our representatives and our senators and people are running for political office right because seniors are are staying in their homes longer right they're staying there because they can't afford to go to these assisted livingings or all that and with that and we're glad they're staying there as our residents but that's not opening up housing for new families to move in and and to bring new kids and all.
>> That's right. So, all of that is not happening because it's a bigger it's a bigger issue that we need to discuss with our our senators and represents like how >> you're favoring the ELA coach over the reading specialist. Is that what your comment was? >> Well, that's number one for everything. I just want to make sure I just want to make sure I remember what your number >> I think there's an argument to be made that if the middle school went back to that two periods of literacy every day some of that problem would disappear. Um but that takes you back into the problem of their schedule and all the things that they need to kind of change. There's no when >> with the reading specialist would be getting middle school back to two periods. >> Um I mean depending on the use the lensure all those pieces.
Um really when we talk about like reading specialist specifically is to address tier 2 interventions that don't exist for a big pocket. >> Rich come on up to the table and explain tier 2 interventions. >> Joe I know you're chomping back at as well too. So actually no >> no no come on up. You don't get >> so great about this. >> Listen. So listen, hold on. >> Before you go forward, listen, you're you're complaining about the time out, but >> this is the night that we have agreed. >> This is the night that we have to make our case >> to the town voters, right? So >> if we're talking about adding these things on top of a budget that already needed to be cut, this is the night. So, we're going to be here until we make a decision until we hear from you guys.
So, >> I I I appreciate the jokes about the time and all that, right? Like, normally we want we have our protocols. We want to get these meetings down, but >> this is the one night that we have attention and you know, we have about 20 people in the crowd, give or take, and some have had to go. But these are the people that we're speaking to that are going to need to support this because we can decide whatever we want, but we're only six votes out of the two towns. Okay. So, what is a tier 2 intervention and why should we care about it? >> Yeah. So, I mean, if you want me to be pretty blunt, straightforward, we we have a lot of work to do in our special education. Um, coming on in, we've been working in terms of just how we structure it, how we provide supports for our kids.
Look at the high school level. I mean, tier 2 inventions, they're few and far between or barely even exist. Um we've been looking at how we maximize our universal supports and then how we build in for all of our kids. Um looking at co-eing and bringing that model so instruction the classroom is actually um modified on a regular basis for you to have a pair of professional in there. Um when we take a look in terms of like tier two tier tier 2 interventions for kids um we're looking at pockets specific areas when we talk about like the reading specialist in general like we we've done the research and I mean how do I put it besides when we take a look in general and we look at the big picture of everything that we've seen over the last couple years um taking hits at Tahanto and losing FTEES and teaching positions there in a small school has a a very dramatic effect in terms of our kids daily operations and what they get.
You feel two people. Um and we spent a lot of time over the course of the summer doing the work. We've done the grunt work of where are the heads? There are no heads. We are we are gutted. Um you know at a small district we do it all. We are the MCCAST specialists. We are the wraparound services. We are the 504 coordinators. We do it all. There is nothing left. If if you look look at our science our our science department, they did a phenomenal job painting the picture of what our science program looks like for our kids. And it's not competitive. We're not we're not keeping up. Uh and and as of next year, it's a simple numbers game. You look at 62 kids of what we have in our nth grade class, which predominantly receives bio. All right? Next year, we talk about that number.
It is going to be upwards of 90. It's going to float around there. We will lose kids. You're not wrong. Um, this is a transitional year that always happens, but there's going to be additional sections that are needed that's going to have to be built on in. We talked a lot about AP classes. We talked nothing about supportive classes. Uh, our need of bio2, which is how we get kids by smaller classes of how we support kids so they get two years of bio so they can pass that MCCAST, increase our scores and make our district competitive. That's stuff that we build in and offer those sections to do that. We didn't talk about our our fundamentals of uh our chemistry fundamentals that was also lost this year, which is a supportive class that's going to need to be built back in next year to be successful and support our kids.
Not just supporting supporting our high achievers, which we which we're advocating for in these AP classes so that they can be successful and be competitive, but also across the board in terms of supporting all of our kids' needs at all different levels. Um, we have a lot of work to do. We've spent a I can't even stress the amount of time we spent uh on flowcharts. If you ever walk in my office, there's about 37 of sticky notes about yay big post up all over the walls. It looks like I'm in a crime scene investigation right now of just outlining every resource we have and how to maximize our people best to put our resources forward. And that's a combination of reallocating and looking at how we do that and combining courses and and creating new courses to offer for what our kids want. There's a lot of work to be done.
Um, and a lot of that comes with not just providing opportunities for our kids, but also building in these tier 2 interventions, these multi-tered support systems that we have in place to support every pocket of student that we have there. So, everyone has a fighting chance and they can be successful. And I have to say, and I have to be very straightforward with it, this is the norm for every for everywhere else. You look anywhere else, everyone has a reading specialist. They have these things. They have coaches. We are known as the district that does more with less. We just are. Uh, And you know, it comes to a time where I understand like, okay, you know, give us a number. I I get that's the piece. Or who can we replace this with? There's nothing there. And other I I will say, I'll say it out loud, you know, and it's going to be an unpopular thing.
But every other town is struggling. I understand it's multi-layered. I understand there's health insurance and things that are out of our control that we do not have, but other towns are doing overrides. Other towns are fighting the fight. Um, we have a strong community. We have a great community that backs us. Um, you know, I I think it's it's time that we, you know, we need to put our money where our mouth is, support our kids, and and try to fight the fight. Um, if there's ever a year to do it, I think this is the year. Uh, for Tahanto, we're simply being asked to made whole for these two positions that we have already lost and have been decimated in terms of our offerings. Um, but in terms of districtwide, you know, these are the bigger needs. We've put the work in. We're presenting them to you.
Uh, we know where the holes are. We know what the problem is to solve it. um they're up there for you. Um it, you know, comes a time where we we just we have to take a vote and and choose where where what battles we fight and and when we fight them. >> And that's our job, right? To advocate for the town and for our schools >> and this is what we need. >> I'm going to push back a little, Megan, for you saying to us like, "What do you want to cut out of here?" That that's not our job, right? We're telling you this is what we need. This is this is the big thing you guys do as a school. We're saying we need this stuff. I appreciate Jackie saying that that's your job now to help. We're telling you what we need.
This is what we need. Um we we we there's nothing else to cut. We don't know where else to go, but we're telling you what we need. And these are tough decisions that you guys make as a school committee that then has to go to the town and fight that on the town floor. But we need you guys fighting it along with them. It's not just our job. >> Eric, could you get those back? >> Yeah. Yeah. >> Like there's nothing to cut. >> Just want to make sure Rich had this moment. >> Sorry. Do you want to ruin my joke? >> Um, I feel tough following that. That was great. That was great. >> But just a question of like um would that get us back to two sections at the middle school and things like that of ELA and reading. We we know what's going on in the state.
We know what's going on in the district. We know that this isn't an easy budget cycle. So, you know, these things that we're coming with are targeted with doing less, doing more with less. So we are looking to hit a pocket amount of kids that we're identifying with the data driven instruction that we're trying to do and saying like who needs this intervention. So if we were to go back to doing two ELA classes for the middle school, we're talking two people, three people. Like that's what we're talking about where with one reading specialist, we've already had a lot of conversations about how we can target and how we can reach these kids in grades six through 10. Like how how can we do more with less and do more with just that one. So like that is a part of what we're coming with is like stretching that one FTE2 to reach all these students who need this instruction because we have had conversations about how we're reaching high achievers, how are we reaching struggling learners, how are we reaching kids in the middle who aren't getting picked up and not qualifying for services but still struggling to read and access curriculum.
And this is, you know, as efficiently as I think we possibly can is is is what we're bringing forward. Um, but that was just that question like would that come back with two and it's more FTE would do that but that's obviously not what happened. So that's why the the one FT we already talk about how efficiently to use somebody like that with that skill set to reach this pocket of kids who who need it. >> So you're saying that's not even the need. Your need is two or three. But this is what you're going to be able to get by with if you can get it. We have a whole list of giant bands and third priority to priorities, right? Really, you know. >> Yeah. I think it's funny because my daughter's in sixth grade. She considers reading an elective >> because of the way it's done.
>> It's because she spends so much time on the iPad. >> YouTube. >> No, it's because it's only she only gets >> Yeah. >> When other sixth graders, another community is still getting 90 minutes of of reading every day. >> Probably most communities. >> I'm sorry. What's that? >> She should get it. She should get it for half the year. >> No. >> Do you want to come up and speak? Come on. >> Feel free. >> Yeah. Come on. Tell us your story. >> What's your name, by the way? >> Shira Dong. D U L O N G S H I R A. Both different. >> Um >> Boilson or Berlin? >> Boilston. >> Thank you. >> I have two. We moved here about five years ago. Um, for the reason of the town and for the educational resources. We lived in towns nearby, but they were we like the size of this.
Um, we are I have a ninth grader and a sixth grader. Um, the idea that I can't even explain the idea that the basics to me of the staff that they're stretched so thin to three in the science department which is so many people want to go into healthcare. Look at our state. The the healthc care is all around us. Um engineering, so many kids want to go there. Yes, we're going to lose kids to folk schools, but they're traditionally not reaching for the higher education of, you know, getting a bachelor's, which isn't even enough these days for this world. And then we talk about wanting to bring it back to the community if they can't even get them successfully into these competitive schools, which is why we came here because the education was so good and not sending our kids to Braftoft, to St.
John's, to um you want to support the community and have them in public school. I grew up in New York City where it wasn't an option back in very old in that day where private school was the only way to go. Um, but it the fact that it's lucky that my daughter's a really good reader, but she doesn't even get reading. I don't even know how that's possible. Uh my son is in English honors and I don't think he writes that much. Uh there's just discrepancies that I think that are not even at level. Like we talk about staying, you know, at level, but these positions seem extraordinarily important and they don't even seem like they should be addition. They should be they shouldn't have been cut in the first place. We're not at level. So, I think adding especially these, you know, with the COVID with the the elementary reading and literacy issues, they can't even do math.
If they can't read, they can't do any subject. I I don't you know we talk about history or you know other but it it goes across the board. If they're not literate they can't do anything. They can't read a math problem. Um then you get more help needed. So, you know, I just think the teaching positions and are just essential and that brings us back to to to it's not even enough but to be I mean it just seems ridiculous that we can't offer that the teacher that these devoted teachers and that's what we need too like Mr. Pino and you know that he is a licensed really he's a chemistry teacher and he's teaching bio. That's crazy. Um it just doesn't make any sense. We can't continue to to hope that we have the uh that the community and the staff that are being spread so thin are going to be loyal.
I mean, if you're not if you're spreading them so thin, what a gift we have that they been such tenured teachers here. But you're going to start losing incredible teachers if if they're just continuing to give and give and give and it's not tenable. It's not sustainable neither for the students nor for it's just going to be a downward spiral for it's just gonna collapse. It's just like a house of hearts. I just think so. I mean everything seems important but for me it seems like safety and teaching seems like the most important. >> Thank you for coming up. >> Thank you. Thank you. >> Back up. >> All right. So, why don't we vote on the ceiling and then Aaron, can you talk what we need is next time we need everyone in this room who's fighting for all this stuff because I personally don't think an override is going to pass.