Lunenburg School Committee Ends Adult Program, Keeps Bus Fee in Budget Crisis

LUNENBURG -- April 1, 2026, Lunenburg School Committee votes to end Lifelong Learning Program and renew student bus fees ahead of May override votes. Citing a financial model that generated only $700 in adult basketball revenue while the district absorbed all overhead costs, the committee unanimously voted to sunset the Lifelong Learning Program effective June 1, with adult users directed to the district's standard facility rental policy. The committee also renewed its student transportation fee structure, $180 for one student, $270 for two or more, with reduced and waived rates for qualifying families, which collected roughly $70,431 combined over the current school year. Chair Amanda Gilman called the fee "shameful" but said she could not vote against it given the district's fiscal position: "It's $70,000 and we are so desperate right now." The committee unanimously authorized Superintendent Dr. Stefani Fortuna to advance a $300,000 federal grant application to offset a projected $130,000 Title I reduction, and approved a letter to House and Senate Ways and Means chairs calling for Chapter 70 formula reform, noting Lunenburg falls in the bottom 7 percent statewide for per-pupil spending despite spending 128 percent of its foundation budget.