Freelake School Committee approves budget that may lead to staff cuts

LAKEVILLE — Freetown-Lakeville Regional School Committee members have approved a budget for next year that educators have said could force cuts of 13 to 16 positions. 

The Lakeville portion of the budget would total $17,781,784, an increase of 4.26 percent over current spending.

A packed house of educators filled the Apponequet Regional High School library at the April 9 meeting in anticipation of the vote and left the meeting after the budget was approved. The educators spoke at length at a previous meeting about the negative impact the budget would have on education. 

“I for one recognize that this budget number may not meet our current needs,’’ newly elected committee Chair Jennifer Blum said. 

She told the educators in the audience that “we see you and we hear you.’’ 

She said she was “committed to take a course of action that will not lead us to repeat a vote like this again.’’

Using money from the excess and deficiency fund, informally known as the rainy day fund, should be considered to bolster the budget, committee member Stephen Sylvia said. “I think it’s time to do that,’’ he said.

Committee member Courtney Brightman described the budget situation as a “fiscal storm.’’ Funding granted during the pandemic has expired, state aid is not keeping up with inflation and the district is feeling “pressures’’ from the towns, she said.

“It’s a very unfortunate fiscal situation,’’ she said. “We would love to do more.’’ But the committee has a “fiduciary responsibility to our towns as well.’’

Newly elected committee member Timothy Emery suggested that the vote be delayed. “I feel as though we’re rushing to do this vote,’’ he said. Unknowns still remain, he said, including possible additional state and federal funding. 

“We’re not stuck,’’ he said. “We have time.’’

Brightman replied that the budget must be presented to the towns by April 18. “That doesn’t give us much time to go back to the drawing board,’’ she said. 

The district had originally proposed a budget that would increase Lakeville’s portion by 9.54 percent. Town administrators and finance committee members from Lakeville and Freetown asked the district to reduce the initial budget figure.

To reach this reduced figure, no further expenses could be cut, John Higgins, director of finance and operations, has said. This led to making staff reductions, he said, some of which reflected declining enrollments.

Crystal Ng and Emery cast the sole votes in opposition to the budget.