Swampscott Postpones Vote on Final School Budget

SWAMPSCOTT, MA – Swampscott School Committee Chair Carin Marshall posted a statement on the Swampscott Schools website regarding the budget process, urging parents and residents to make their priorities known.

During a presentation last month, cutting free kindergarten to a half day was named as a possible way to close the $275,000 gap in the school budget. The budget gap may be different today from the January presentation. In her statement, Marshall said the school department does not want to cut kindergarten, and the school district is looking to the town to close the gap in the budget.

"It is our position that with all the steps the school district has taken to get our costs down and to achieve savings, we are now looking to the town to close that gap in our budget so that we can move forward without the need for any additional cuts or changes (to kindergarten or elsewhere)," reads the statement.

Marshall also wrote that the final budget vote has been moved to Feb. 16, to give stakeholders more time to come up with a solution.

Regarding the gap in funds, Marshall wrote that salaries make up 80 percent of the school budget, and said the increase in salaries every year is consistently a struggle to balance. Marshall said a lack of state funding also makes it difficult to budget.

"Rising costs of special education and health care for employees, along with unfunded mandates, continue to strap districts all around the state. We are not the only ones facing these issues."

To read the full statement, click here.

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