SWAMPSCOTT — Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations Cheryl Herrick-Stella provided an update to the School Committee on the district’s budget for fiscal year 2024, revealing that it is currently projected to end in a deficit of $47,389.
Residents voted to allocate additional funds to the school district at a Special Town Meeting in March through the Commonwealth’s Chapter 70 program. Herrick-Stella said she initially thought the funds would resolve the deficit, which was originally projected at $200,999, entirely. However, an unforeseen residential placement for an out-of-district student resulted in additional costs.
“This is of significantly more cost to the district from now through the end of the year,” Herrick-Stella said.
When asked by School Committee member Amy O’Connor what would happen if the district ended the year in a deficit, Herrick-Stella said that funds would be taken from the special education reserve fund to supplement it. The special education cost center is the only budget item expected to exceed its budget.
“We don’t have to use the full reserve fund,” Herrick-Stella said. “Individuals thought we were using the whole reserve, and we’re not. I think it’s important for people to understand we are truly using it for its purpose.”
Superintendent of Schools Pamela Angelakis emphasized that the district will continue to look for “creative” solutions to reduce the deficit throughout May and June.
“None of us are going to sacrifice the needs of the students to fit into a number,” Angelakis said. “The kids’ needs come first, and we will never deviate from that mission.”
Herrick-Stella said she is helping to create a memorandum of understanding for a new utility stabilization reserve fund, which is going to be used to fund the operations for the new school slated to open this fall.
“We all discussed creating an MOU on the parameters around this fund, so there was comfort that we weren’t just going to take the money and use it for anything else,” Herrick-Stella said.
She said she does not expect the fund to be an annual necessity moving forward, as operating costs should reduce once strides are made in the opening process of the school.
