LAKEVILLE — The final education budget for the Freetown-Lakeville Regional School District eliminated 11 positions — most of them teachers — prompting students, recent graduates and educators to urge the School Committee to reconsider.

The eliminated positions include three Apponequet Regional High School teachers: a world language, history and English language arts teacher — as well as an elementary literacy specialist, an elementary math specialist, three elementary classroom teachers and three paraprofessionals.

“Our teachers have shown us how to stand up for what we believe is right, and we believe that this is wrong,” recent Apponequet graduate Lucas Soares told School Committee members on June 11. Soares, who graduated third in his class, was joined by five other 2025 top 10 graduates expressing their displeasure with the cuts.

When 2026 budget talks began, officials estimated the district could lose up to 17 positions, but additional state funding reduced that number to 11. In May, School Committee members sought to further reduce the cuts to seven by using $250,000 from the district’s excess and deficiency account — surplus funds carried over from prior budgets.

At a May 7 meeting, members believed they had approved the use of those funds to save the four additional positions. However, input from the state and district legal counsel later revealed the vote had failed. The motion, which required a two-thirds majority, did not pass because one member was absent and two voted no — leaving only a simple majority in favor.

The committee revisited the issue on May 21 but chose not to use excess and deficiency funds to save positions. School Committee chair Jennifer Blum said at the meeting that the committee may revisit the matter again in the future “but no further action will be taken at this time.” As of this writing the committee has not voted again on using excess and deficiency funds to avoid position loss. 

The final FreeLake education budget totals $48,640,993 — about $650,000 more than originally estimated — but still short of the amount needed to prevent position cuts.

In early June, both Freetown and Lakeville approved next year’s education spending at their respective Town Meetings.

At the June 11 School Committee meeting, teachers, current students and recent graduates spoke out against the cuts and urged committee members to reconsider using the $250,000 of excess and deficiency funds to save positions.

“I am speaking tonight as a lifetime Freetown-Lakeville employee and student,” said Freetown-Lakeville Elementary Physical Education Teacher Jill Stonehouse-L'Heureux. “Forty years of my life have been inside these walls. I’ve seen many things: promises kept, promises hoping to be kept and promises broken.”

Stonehouse-L'Heureux said the loss of literacy specialists and math specialists will mean at-risk elementary students could fall further behind.

“If you can reconsider that $250,000, it will save not just our four positions — it’ll save 20 to 30 students from not being able to receive services,” she said.

Apponequet 10th grader Hayden Ricciardi told the School Committee the cuts mean her junior varsity lacrosse coach, Cormac Smith, could lose his job. Smith is also a social studies teacher at Apponequet.

“Mr. Smith is not only a good teacher but a good coach and deserves to keep his job after everything he has done for the school,” Hayden said. “Please reconsider your decision, thank you.”

Educators from the social studies department said the cuts will have a wide-ranging impact on their department, including reduced elective offerings and obstacles to expanding AP classes.

Social Studies Curriculum Leader Laura Barnicoat said last year, Apponequet students’ Civics Action Projects earned praise from state education officials — something future students may not experience.

“Cutting our department could put the Civics Action Project at risk, as with one less member we would be asking members of our department to carry more on their plates,” she said.

Apponequet social studies teacher Joseph Solomon said the position eliminations will “stunt the growth” of AP class opportunities.

“Give us a year to show you that we are in fact growing as a department and that we truly do need every position that we currently have,” Solomon said.

Soares and the five other graduates present at the June 11 meeting concluded the public comments addressed to the School Committee.

“I have experienced a roller coaster of emotions — the confusion and unhappiness at initially hearing teachers were getting cut. I was relieved at first to hear that something was passed to prevent this happening,” Soares said.

“All of this only to hear that this bill would not be passed — at the very same meeting where we gave speeches about the impact our teachers had upon us during our time in this district,” he said, referencing the May 21 meeting at which the top 10 graduates spoke and were given a commemorative pen by the School Committee to recognize their achievements.

“Members of the School Committee, we urge you to do what is right and make the move to support education and continue to build up students,” Soares said. “Until that happens, we cannot accept the gift that recognizes our achievement while simultaneously knowing action is being taken to reduce the potential of future students to achieve.”

All six graduates returned their commemorative pens to the committee, laying them in front of School Committee Secretary Courtney Brightman in protest.