STERLING — It was not a comfortable discussion when Superintendent James Reilly and Business and Finance Director Michelle Grise met with Sterling officials March 13 to discuss a budget that increases assessments to the town without any real additions to the education plan.
In some ways, as Sterling Finance Committee Chairman George Handy said, the presentation had to deal with things in the rear-view mirror (looking at the past) rather than the windshield (the future).
Reilly said it was “not a great year for us to come speak to you. We don’t have a lot in this budget that will move things forward for kids.”
Reilly said that when he joined the district in July 2022, finances were a mess, but it came to a head when the budget for that year needed a $1.65 million transfer to balance. That gave him “grave concerns” for the fiscal 2023 budget, which ended last June 30, because it was built on the same assumptions. In the end, they had to use their excess and deficiency fund to amend the operating budget by $950,000.
“That made me worried about the fiscal 2024 budget, which had already passed,” Reilly said.
In addition, this year, 211 school districts, including Wachusett, were surprised by the minimal increase in state aid to schools, $30 per student, or just over $200,000 for the Wachusett district. That is due, in part, to the state using a smaller inflation rate than previous years. Last year, the state used a 4.5% inflation rate; this year, they reduced it to 1.35%.
So while the fiscal 2024 school budget received an increase of $3.4 million in state aid, the fiscal 2025 increase was $202,890.
The state did allow out-of-district special education tuition to go up more than 14% for fiscal 2024 and 4.69% for the coming year.
The Wachusett draft budget has increased 4.97%, to $121,979,287, while total town assessments have increased 6.12%, which Reilly said is the largest town assessment increase in recent years. Sterling’s increase is 4.56%. Other town assessment increases in the district: Princeton, 8.46%, Rutland, 7.76%; Holden, 5.98%; and Paxton, 4.39%.
Two improvements for the district-owned high school are included in the budget: One is to install a consistent intercom in the building; the other is to install a functioning sound system in the auditorium, as they are currently renting a system.
While Reilly praised the support Sterling has shown for its schools, the district has the 25th lowest per pupil spending in the state.
“We want to spend more on our kids,” Reilly said. In addition, Wachusett does not get the same types of grants as other districts, especially those in urban areas.
While the School Committee approved the budget plan for this year, they are looking for changes going forward, including looking at joining a collaborative for special needs programs and opening up School Choice to fill empty seats and bring in revenue. They will also be looking at programs directed at students looking at careers after school, but may not want to go to a vocational program.
The budget will be presented at the spring town meetings: Sterling and Paxton, May 6; Rutland, May 11; Princeton, May 14; and Holden, May 20.
