The reduction of 60 staff is from not filling positions when they became vacant from resignations or retirements. In addition, the hiring freeze remains in effect for the agency. The highlights of the January 2026 financial report shows the total revenue of 21.3 million was 7.2 2 million higher than January 2025, the revenues of 14 million. The major difference is the increase in institutional vouchers by 5.6 million, federal grants by 729,000, and classroom site fund revenues of 787,000. The budget fiscal year 26 obligated expenses of 37.8 8 million were 2.3 million less than budget fiscal year 2025 obligated expenses of 40.1 million. The decreases are in salaries and professional and outside services. The decrease in professional and outside service is caused by a decrease in contracted transportation for students offset by an increase in contracted staff due to filling due to not filling positions when they became vacant and the hiring freeze.
We appreciate that. Will they eventually come back with a report for you? Um, I do get reports from him. Oh, you do the report. He gets She gets them to me. I get a copy of his report. Okay. The other thing on your report that I thought was kind of cute was the wellness committee. Guess the wellness committee. Yeah. Due to illness and multiple I thought that was kind of cute. Um I was thinking he's canceled because of sickness. I'm sorry, Jen. That but I I just had to bring that up. That that's that was that kind of made my afternoon that the wellness committee was cancelled due to illness. Um thank you. So we need to to accept that right. We need to vote. Yeah. You need on that item unless somebody has questions about any of the other reports. Um is the calendar in this?
So there is even though GCG does comment on this, Vaness actually was the traffic peer review and I think they closed out their review some time ago based on the uh a number of factors consider relating to traffic. But just just so we're aware, there was a separate traffic review of this as well outside of GCG. >> Yes. Yes, I noted that. And also um I was wondering where the snow storage ended up because it did GCG did talk about it moving, but I wasn't sure. I was looking for it on the plans and I might have just missed the note about where the snow storage ended up. >> I'll bring up very soon. >> Oh, really? It is a big file. All right. Um I don't have a problem with the number of parking. It seems I'd hate to say that I'd like to pave over more to provide more parking.
The financial report shows an increase in fund balance of 6.2 million due to the increase in cash received from the institutional vouchers. The voucher reimbursements provided to the districts at the end of the school year will utilize approximately 5.5 million of that increased fund balance.
No, it's in the new business. Old business. Old business. Okay. Or old business. What are No. Yeah. Does anybody have any questions on any of the other reports? No. I'm just picking on Jen tonight. Sorry, Jen. Um, can I have a motion then to accept Jennifer's report? Not just hers. All of all of the administrator 4.2. Thank you. All the reports. I make a motion we accept the administrative reports 4.2 under the consent agenda. I'll second that motion. All those in favor? I'm Melinda Sraki. I Fred Rushton. I Charlene Diaz. I B Ziki. I Sheila Bernett. Okay, we are into old business revised policy. This is We talked about this last week. Yeah, last time. Yes. This is the second reading uh for the changes in uh professional support um professional and staff support paid time off. Um and uh we spent some time on that.
So, um does anyone have a I know that that's not really mathematical. If you guys are wildly successful, like is there a way to expand parking or is it basically kind of what you start what you end up with is what you're going to have for kind of ever? >> I I can just speak from what I know from the Y. I think that if they were wildly successful, they would have to stagger programming to adapt to car needs. >> So change something else to uh >> Yeah. Exactly. There's also opportunities to, you know, depending on what those activities are to, you know, have kids take the bus there or um, you know, etc. But I think, um, Framingham is a pretty successful Y. Um, and and again, we modeled this off of of what they're using. We actually even went over to see, you know, do they have extra spaces and and really kind of dialed in on these on these numbers.
This concludes my report of the agency financial status and I'm available to answer any questions. I see no questions. Thank you so much. >> Thank you. >> Okay, moving on. Um, we are at 6.2 since um, prior to this, this has all been already approved on our consent agenda item, but we did pull 6.2 off for discussion. Who Who do you need for questions? I think I just want to clarify. >> Okay. >> Who would >> Hi, this is board member Shauna Tomo. I'm just asking just a little bit of clarification on the two salary schedules. I understand that you did some explanation already. Um, we would just like some clarification on that. Who might be the best person that be? I would defer to our executive director of human resources, Anita Payet. >> Good afternoon, board president Buchanan, members of the board, Superintendent Reichman, Assistant Superintendent Cooper, and Deputy Assistant Super Catch Off.
Yeah, we did. It should be an action item and I missed that on both of them. Oh, you missed it on both of them as an action item. Well, I guess it waits till next month because it's just listed as discuss discussion, but it does say action here. Oh, yeah. Okay. Oh, um to bring to bring our new board member up to date, basically these are policies that allow um employees to give some time and there's some limitations on that. You might want to read them. They're kind of interesting. You know, that kind of stuff. GCCA is a revision of the policy that's been there. GCCG is a is a new policy. Gotcha. Um, that allows us to have, as Melinda said, allows us allows our employees to donate uh some of their PTO time into kind of a pool of time so that if people uh, you know, somebody has a catastrophic illness or something and use up uses up all their PTO, they can they, you know, can apply for some additional time.
So, we feel pretty pretty confident in that. And the parking spaces are also not following Ashlin standard. I think they are smaller. Is that 9 by? Yes versus 9 by 20. >> Yeah, >> that's that's correct. We did receive the relief from the ZBA. They're kind of industry standard now, but not necessarily Ashlin zoning bylaw standard, but we did get the relief. >> Yeah, that was the point that we made. Boy, it was a while ago now that um looking for relief in that 9 by18 and then um Jasmine actually made the comment that I don't know if the planning board actually has the authority to grant that relief and it was determined I believe by town council that it was the zoning board of appeals that grants that relief and not us. >> So they did get it granted by the zoning board of appeals and now it's back to us.
Hi, Anita. Thank you. This is board member Shauna Tmico. So in looking at these two again I I understood um the things that you had shared earlier. I just want to make sure that I fully understand the two documents that we're looking at. Um stop me at any time that I'm heading down the wrong or jump in. Um, so the one that has the salary schedule sunset on August 1st, 2026 is the current active salary schedule that the school has been utilizing. >> That is correct. Which Okay. Um, and so the proposal is to replace this with the other one that shows the years ending at 10 effective July 1st, 2026. It will be replacing this salary schedule. >> That is correct. >> Anita, this is Mike. Um, can you just kind of give us some the rationale around it? I mean, going from a 20-year uh capped and stepped um professional development type of uh salary range or or program to one that's capped at 10 years.
Okay. But they're interesting. I would I would suggest you at least read the titles and um revise calendar. Madame President and board members, um in in the process of working on the calendar, I forgot that Mrs. lot and the um instructional coaches had asked that we not have the additional professional development day for new teachers to be at the end of the first or second week of school. So on the calendar that you approved earlier, that's where it was. This one moves it to the last Friday in September. um uh because we've learned that our new teachers are pretty overwhelmed uh the first couple of weeks at school of school and adding another PD to them at that time uh is is probably not a good use of their time. Uh so you know we give them a little chance to get uh get uh going and then offer those additional P that additional PD day.
>> It's right below the next one. I didn't notice that. Um um when you find those numbers we can look at it but I I guess we should move on. Um there is uh seven as well. Looks like there is some comment on the height and I don't know if it is a building department comment versus planning vote. Um >> sorry you're backtracking to seven. >> Yeah, sorry. I think the height uh I think the calc the the question there I think is about how the the average height is calculated. Um and that was saying that the um um the building department um Doug Scott will probably be calculating that. Um I think for our point it was about um that they are asking for relief for the height in general because the back is three stories and the >> I don't remember what the front height is.
And how's that supposed to work, you know, for you know, if Annette's talking about a 50-year plan here? So what do you do in uh 2037 when somebody's been here and I mean there how's that work and what's the rationale behind behind this besides the initial savings that which won't occur immediately because you got a whole slew of folks who are grandfathered. So just just give me an idea of what the what the uh thought process was on this please. >> Sure. So, for those of you who may not know, I've been here for 25 years. And during the time here, our classification or compensation package for teachers has fluctuated just like other school districts in terms of um allowing years of service where you see in this current schedule 25 years and then you see it now us recommending the 10 years. Typically that's done for budgetary reasons because we can no longer sustain those amount or that type of increase or those type of hires.
So it's just moving that one PD day from August to September. Okay, we need a motion to adopt the revised uh calendar. Jen, did I do that correctly? I'm looking at the 28th of August, and we talked about the 25th of September, didn't we? Now, on the 28th of August, it says 25th. It says the 25th. Now, I see I've got it on the 25th. I've got the note on the 25th of September, but I gradeed out the day on the 28th of August. Got to change colors. So, is it August or September where we need it? Yeah, I I put the note in the right place. I didn't color the Friday correctly. So, it is moving that PD day from the 7th of August to the 25th of September. Yeah. Okay. I need a motion to adopt. Madame President, I make a motion that we adopt the revised calendars presented to us.
We've looked at it before. >> It's just two stories. Yep. And and that's exactly right, Trisha. when you do that average calculation of the height across the the perimeter of the building, it it's higher than what is um within the bylaw. >> And so there was a request for um an allowable height um by Matt special permit. >> That that's correct. Yeah. So we're in between the zone of what's by right and not allowed which falls into a special permit. So we are speak seeking that relief. >> Yeah. And I I want to say the height from the street was around 35 ft. Is that >> 46.5? >> 30 3 >> 46.5. Right. >> I thought that was at the back. >> The back is 54.5. >> Yeah. One moment. That one I have that one I have and I can I can share uh from the front.
So in the current schedule um while previously to moving to the 25 years we used to only cap at uh 8. So um that changed which is why you see the 25 years for now. Now we're moving to or we'd like to recommend to move to the 10 years. What this schedule means is that new teachers coming in would be placed at their um based on first of all certification. So currently we have three buckets for certification how teachers come in. One is the temporarys those that are um emergency or alternatively certified. Then the second bucket is those who have partial certification. So they may have partial certification in terms of maybe they have a standard elementary or standard secondary but they still need the HI or VI certification. And then the third bucket is those that are fully certified. So that is one component of the schedule we have not done in the past.
Do I have a second? I'll second that motion. All those in favor? I saski. I Fred Rushton. I Charlene Diaz. I Barb Zerziki. I Sheila Bernett. Item 6.1, fiscal year's 25 audit reports. And this is the reason why I put put Dr. Stewart on on the hot seat was because I wanted you guys to understand what some of these things were. Um, if you'd pull up the one that has the recommendations for, you know, for changed things. No, it's not that one. Yes, it's that one. This says to Gord. Yeah, there you go. Yeah. Okay. So, u uh the audit report is we have a clean audit which means they didn't find any evidence of fraud or um uh misuse of funds. They always uh in fact they discuss these with us as they're going through the audit during the week when they're here. Um and then we have an exit conference about these kinds of things before they leave.
34 foot8. Um again if I can uh if you want me to share that 34T8 is what you'll see from the front of the building. So what's the 46T 5 in on this note that is there that says it's proposed height the first sentence or second sentence >> that is likely >> is that referring to another Yeah, that is um >> it's worded kind of strangely there, but that's GCG wording it strangely. Um >> elevations here. >> Is it 30 ft by height in that area? Maybe it was. >> Was it >> 40? Might 46 feet five inches be average. >> It might that might be the that might be the average. I think what we were determining >> I know. Yeah. >> I remember I remember talking about how an average single family home is allowed to be 35 ft in in the resident um residential one a districts.
The second piece to that is obviously the degrees. Um, so we've consolidated that to the three degrees for bachelor's, master, and doctorate. In this model, the as um, assistant super cooper stated prior, the only way staff can move across this model would be through degrees certification. Now teachers coming in um who do not hold all of the required certifications will be placed at the bachelor's level upon completion of the certification requirements for the position. Then they would be able to be moved to and credited the years of experience. So right now looking I mean not right now but looking into the fall there's one there's one salary for temporarys for new hire and it's like 425 and that would be anybody who has partials or not I mean what is that just ongoing that and when you have that you'd stay until you had additional then you wouldn't move >> until you obtain the full certification.
So I'm never surprised. Um I was notified of these the last day they were here and we've already corrected some of them. So you can see uh 20 2025-1. Um they looked at 13 pro procurements uh documents uh where we had purchases between$10,000 and $100,000 and they found that for two of them uh we had not obtained written quotes. We have to have at least three written quotes. Um somehow or other we missed that. And and so you know they're saying to us fix this. Make sure that you always have at least three. Um we try to do that. you know, we've always tried to do that. Uh, but sometimes we make mistakes. So, it just means we have to have more due diligence this, you know, this year, uh, to make sure that we're not doing that again. Now, what happens, Dr. Stewart, if we put something out for a quote and we only get two quotes back, then we note, uh, because we list how many people or how many we send it to.