Lunenburg School Committee corrects $500,000 error, tables athletic trainer cut

School Committee · Meeting of March 4, 2026

Lunenburg School Committee corrects a $500,000 budget error, dropping the reported FY27 deficit from roughly $2.4 million to $1,978,307. Superintendent Dr. Fortuna publicly credited community member T.J.

Laughlin with identifying the miscalculation, which had stemmed from double-counted free cash and a roughly $19,000 error in projected costs. The committee also rejected without a vote a Finance Committee proposal to outsource custodial services, with the district's facilities director and AFSCME Council 93 staff representative Chris Robarge warning that privatization would cost more long-term and expose schools to a "revolving door of strangers." The committee tabled a related proposal to replace the full-time athletic trainer with a contracted EMT model — a move that would have saved an estimated $46,000 — after football coach Casey McDonald and several members raised concussion-safety concerns. The committee unanimously approved a $731.50 American Battlefield Trust grant reimbursement to fund a May 29 field trip to Minuteman National Historical Park and accepted the Betsy B.

Parker Scholarship, a new award endowed by a 1976 Lunenburg High School graduate honoring three-sport varsity athletes.

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Source: the School Committee meeting of March 4, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.