001and first order of business will be to stand for the pledge of allegiance if you can. I aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Okay, I don't think we have the push. Listen, while you leave, so the general purpose of tonight's meeting is to review and conduct a public hearing on the fiscal year 26 Wor public schools budget. So I hear they listen to any testimony. Anybody want to speak? Uh, we have Oh, we do a roll call first. I'm sorry. Uh, member Alvarez, member Bianio here. Member Benza, member Guardiola here. Vice Chair Johnson here. Member Mailman here. Member McCulla here. Member Roy is here. Mayor Penny here. Okay. Um, so we're here
002to take public comment. Mr. Ellen is going to do a small presentation. Oh, you're going to do a small presentation. Okay. Um, Mr. Allen, Deputy Superintendent [Music] Allen through the chair. So, uh, just want to give an update on the, uh, status of the FY26 budget. We did provide a report of the superintendent on May 1st, but now the budget book has been released. I just want to uh provide some highlights what's included in the final uh budget recommendations to the school committee. And so uh for anybody uh listening in the public, the budget is on the district's website. Uh just navigate uh from uh over to the budget section of the website and it's uh fully downloadable from there. Again, I think this slide has been uh discussed many times, but uh as we
003can see, um the FY26 budget themes this year were driven by our enrollment increase of 428 students, a moderate inflation rate of of 1.93%. the fifth year phase in out of six years of the student opportunity act that provided sign significant funds. The enrollment based staffing shifts that do occur within uh each of the schools as we go through the budget process each spring and then again as we've talked a number of times um the introduction of an equity based budget process to be used with some investments within the FY26 budget recommendations. So in terms of our budget prioritization framework again we uh really have been thoughtful to allocate resources which we'll show uh later uh around our strategic plan the six uh key priorities. also mindful of the superintendent's uh goals this year. Uh
004district goal number two which talks about codifying that equity uh budget process which we have done and again we've laid a foundation and framework around what that will could look like um in future years. Also keeping in mind the vision of a learner um as part of all of the work that we do and as a part of the resources that are allocated within the FY26 budget. We developed some guiding principles as you saw at the report of superintendent May 1st and as you saw last year as we were going through city and budget reductions. Um but really a framework of uh what we go through as part of each of the decision-making. We want to make sure we adhere to all the collective bargaining agreements as well as the state and federal laws. We
005want to engage in transparent drd driven practices and promote WPS success. Ensure quality academic excellence through continuous improvement. Embrace cultural culture of equity and engagement that allows for variability and a commitment to safe and secure and welcoming schools. As we discussed when we when we talk about a resource, it could come in a v a variety of ways, time, people, and money. And so you'll see allocation of uh these in different ways throughout the FY26 budget. We remain committed to the foundations of excellence that we established last year. And despite the $22 million budget gap last year, um we've continued uh through an average class size K through 12 of 21 to1 um maintaining uh counselor ratios at 250 students per counselor and then uh 10 students per adult which includes teachers and parent educators
006for our elementary special education inclusion our TMS uh model. And as we discussed at the May 1st meeting, our equity budgeting process and we went through this year collecting feedback from a wide range of stakeholders uh from principles and educators uh family and community engagement roundt with the students through the student advisory council and then through CPAC as well. And so we really wanted to hear from each of these groups of what equity budgeting could look like. What does it mean to them? And we wanted to take that feedback as a part of our decision-making process. And so what we heard if we took all of that feedback and distilled it down to the three uh highest priorities that emerged. The first one was strengthening tier one instruction and professional development loud and clear. Staffing
007for student support and instructional improvement and then expanding student learning opportunities and equity based programs. And so again, we uh laid some foundations in the FY26 budget and with the final year of student opportunity act funds in FY27, hopefully we can make more investments in these areas next year. So for FY26 for the upcoming school year, we had seen we talked about the enrollment increase, foundation budget inflation factor, the student opportunity act less than charter school assessments at the time the budget was developed about a $38.2 2 million budget increases. While we saw salary increases going up $22 million, health insurance and retirement increases $10.3 million. The out of district uh transportation $1.1 million and all other accounts $1 million. So uh that's a total cost increase of 30 $34.4 million didn't leave us a
008lot for investment in the equity based budgeting as much as we would like to have done this year. So we've uh been able to make investments in FY26 through really uh these two key priorities. Enhance collective efficacy through common planning time. That's done differently at the elementary and secondary model. The elementary level we're actually providing time to schools uh for teams to meet um before after school uh in common planning. Uh we found that to be very effective. It's been identified as one of the most highest leverage points for uh student achievement. And at the secondary level, we're doing that through the addition of climate and culture assistance. It's allowing teachers to meet during the school day um so they don't have to do non-instructional duty coverages. And so instead of paying teachers to cover
009bathrooms, we're paying climate cultural assistants to do some of that work. So their duty teacher duty period can be around instruction and supporting instruction. And then second um is uh investments in expanding after school opportunities. So whether it's our Spark programs or other um after school programs throughout the district as well as continuing those late buses that we reinstituted this year with uh the one-time money uh providing opportunities for students to stay after school at the secondary level and allow them a bus at home as well as funding some programs and after school programs as well. So saying that I just want to uh talk about some of the highlights that are within the FY26 budget that directly connect as you can see the direct connection back to the six key priorities of the strategic
010plan and I'll go through each of the six uh priorities separately. So with regards to equitable resources and educational program, some of the highlights includes the framework for that equity based uh program that we had talked about, maintaining the average class sizes of 21 students in grades K to 12, provides equitable special education case loads we talked about, maintaining 1:1 ratios for devices through the replacement lease of 6,000 new Chromebooks next year. We've the last uh finance and operations governance meeting we talked about how that will be kind of u managed going forward provides funds for new secondary math textbooks of um $741,000 funds in elementary spark summer school and after school programs out of the general fund budget $143,000 and as I said maintains that late buses at all secondary schools to allow students
011to participate in after school program so transportation would not be a barrier for students uh to participate in those programs. With regards to the acquire and retain talent key priority, funds all contractual salary increases or provides employees with a competitive salary for each bargaining group. Um adds funds to support the district's recruitment efforts for new staff and maintains the funds for the school psychologist internship to develop the pipeline for future employment. with regards to the health and wellness priority. Maintains an appropriate level of guidance and school adjustment counselor ratios across the district at 250 students per counselor. Maintains all the school nurse positions in all schoolbased locations. Regards to climate and culture uh key priority, it converts the chief academic officer position that was vacant this year to a director of climate and culture to
012provide better support to schools again at no cost to the district. the reallocation of a pos a position. As I mentioned earlier, it provides funds for eight additional climate and culture assistance at secondary schools at to reduce teachers using duty periods for non instructional activities and maintains funding for school-based climate and culture team planning at uh just over $147,000. With regards to family in community engagement key priority, it adds a student placement and enrollment administrator and that's through a reallocation of a uh funds at the parent information center to improve student enrollment process and program options available to students in the west public schools. That's reallocating a principal position um to this new position. No cost to the no additional cost to the district. It maintains all family and community engagement programs using a combination
013of grant uh general fund and outside funding sources. And then the modernize and safe facilities K priority maintains funding for facilities management to allow for timely response to high priority building needs and to address preventive maintenance and repair projects and maintains the funding for school safety to address recommendations in the school safety audit report. So with that, that's a summary of uh what's included in the 400page budget book. Um we'll turn it back to you, Mr. Mayor. Thank u how many people we have on the line? We have uh nine attendees and two with their hand up. Okay. Put them on. Uh you get two minutes. Alison Doyle. Ash. Is it Ashan? I can't see it. Is that Ashan Doyle? Okay. I'm used to it. Thank you. My name is Ashlin Doyle and I live
014in Worcester. In this budget, the district proposes adding three new elementary enrichment positions, bringing the total to 42. I'd like to advocate that these new positions be converted to elementary library media specialists and be placed at the one city, one library branches so that students at those schools can have library as a special as part of their weekly rotation of five specials. The city spends $78,000 a year on the four elementary school libraries, but it is disheartening that those libraries do not get adequate or consistent use and they're not staffed by any librarians at all. Converting these new elementary enrichment positions to library media specialist positions does not cost any additional money and there would be huge benefits to students having library every week and having it be taught by librarian. I also request that
015the committee allocate money for a principal position for Woodland Academy. One principal covering a thousand students from K through 12 is not acceptable. I encourage this committee to look at the data at Woodland in terms of how many ASP referrals are made and how often sacks are called to support students in crisis. Woodland already has a high turnover rate of teachers. They need support and someone who is present. And importantly, Woodland starts a new two-way dual language program in the fall. A new program needs time and attention to make sure it is implemented successfully. I can't imagine the district would do this for any other elementary school. For example, this budget reinstates a principal position for Wikas, a school of just 155 students. Why isn't the district suggesting that Wikas share its principal with Thornike
016or Lincoln Street? Let's not ask Woodland to do something we don't ask of other schools. Thank you. And thank you. Next speaker, Dina Teski. Hi, good evening. Can you hear me? Okay, sure. Go ahead. Just your name and say your residence. My name is Dina Teddeski. I'm a Worcester resident as well as the parent of a Worcester public school graduate and a current seventh grader. I'm concerned that once again the district and the school committee are not putting forth the plan to have elementary library media specialists in this presented budget. Want to echo some of the comments by Miss Doyle. Um three new elementary enrichment positions are proposed bringing the total to 42. I advocate also for converting these three positions to elementary library media specialists. And these could be placed in the one city,
017one library branches, allowing scholars at these schools to have library as a special as part of their weekly rotation. How can we spend as a city $100,000 per year on four elementary school libraries and not fully properly or properly support staff or utilize them? Our scholars suffer as a result. There's regular talk of early literacy at school committee meetings and many on the school committee have said that they are supportive of school libraries with the followup of these are there just isn't money for these positions positions and it seems that simply this is not true. Converting these elementary enrichment positions to library media specialists positions would not cost any additional money and at the same time would provide immense benefits to scholars by having library each week as taught by a librarian just like other
018specials. If this community truly believes literacy matters for our youngest scholars, elementary school libraries with staff is the right and critical direction and putting these few positions at minimum in place would be a direct and important step in supporting our elementary school scholars, their education and literacy and our schools. Thank you. Thank you. Okay, seeing nobody else, we'll close that part of the meeting. Um, we all set everyone see her on the 5th. So, motions to adjourn. Roll call. Member Alvarez. Member Bianceria. Yes. Member Benenda, member Guardiola. Yes. Vice Chair Johnson. Yes. Member Mailman. Yes. Member McCulla. Yes. Member Roy. Yes. Mayor Petty. Yes. Perfect.