LYNN — At Thursday evening’s School Committee meeting, members voted unanimously to approve the FY27 budget proposal, closing a $7 million deficit.
“For several months and years, we’ve gotten ready for this cycle,” Mayor Jared Nicholson said at the outset, thanking community members, staff, and stakeholders who contributed feedback throughout the process.
The budget, he noted, comes during “a difficult year,” shaped largely by reduced enrollment and uncertainty around state funding.
“We’ve continued our advocacy with the state with respect to the hope for funds to smooth out the enrollment decline,” he stated, adding that regional collaboration through the Metro Mayors Coalition has helped build broader legislative support.
Still, Nicholson acknowledged they could not rely on additional aid when crafting the budget, emphasizing the legal requirement to pass a balanced plan.
Superintendent Molly Cohen described the budget as the result of an extensive, iterative process, but it was completed without losing any personnel. Although some positions might be reassigned within the district, the $7 million gap was closed without personnel losses.
“The budget is always a blueprint for our guiding principles, our commitment to our investment in our students, to our core values,” she said. This year, however, the process was complicated by declining enrollment, which resulted in less funding and forced difficult tradeoffs.
Cohen said that they spoke with unions, administrators, and community stakeholders over a period of several months. She added that they first reduced non-personnel expenses, then adjusted leadership roles, and finally turned to staffing to close the remaining deficit.
“We looked across the budget, across the entire district, and we looked to see where we can reduce evenly,” Cohen explained, noting that educators make up roughly 74 percent of the budget.
Despite reductions, Cohen stated that they aimed to preserve core priorities, including strengthening instruction, supporting educators, and maintaining equitable access for students.
“Every single role in the district … (is) working toward strengthening the instructional core,” Cohen said, emphasizing the importance of coaching, mentoring, and staff retention.
The budget also reflects strategic decisions to reinvest in certain roles. In the proposal, there were amendments to restore the eighth-grade music teacher position at Lynn Technical Vocational Institute, which had originally been cut from the budget, as well as a total of two librarians at Lynn English and Lynn Classical High School.
However, reinstating those positions meant having to close the CADD (computer-aided drafting and design) position and utilizing funds from the capital projects line.
“What the capital project means…is that although we can transfer that money for the librarians,” Cohen explained, “it means that that money (approximately $200,000) is no longer in the capital projects line for the building and grounds maintenance.”
The most contentious moment of the evening came during a debate over a proposal to eliminate a transportation assistant data manager position.
Member Tristan Smith argued the cut was necessary given financial constraints, saying, “This motion is not personal, it’s personnel… we are just looking for the admin to put a little more skin in the game.”
Others strongly opposed the move, citing the department’s recent improvements and cost savings.
Member Lorraine Gately warned that eliminating the position would “put a huge wrench in their progress,” pointing to efforts to diversify transportation vendors and improve reliability for students.
Administrators underscored the complexity of transportation services, particularly for vulnerable populations.
The district serves approximately 1,600 special education students requiring transportation, along with hundreds more experiencing homelessness or in state custody. It was reported that the department has saved millions in recent years through improved vendor management and accountability measures.
“Transportation is a student-facing position,” Administrator of Special Education Dr. Christina Colella. said, emphasizing its direct impact on attendance, safety, and legal compliance. “They have to legally arrive at school on time, and we need to be making sure that we’re able to hold vendors accountable.”
Despite the concerns, the committee ultimately approved the motion to cut the position, though it resulted in an unbalanced budget, with almost $100,000 unaccounted for. Members then decided in a 5-1 vote, with Gately abstaining, to reallocate the roughly $99,374 savings to another budget line to maintain balance.
Throughout the discussion, several members acknowledged the difficulty of weighing competing priorities.
“There are real needs around the district that are going to go unmet in this budget,” Nicholson said. “It’s really hard when we get into the situations where we’re being forced to sort of pit positions and departments against one another.”
