Sturbridge School Committee OKs $14.36 million FY27 budget

School Committee · Meeting of March 5, 2026

Sturbridge School Committee advances a $14.36 million FY27 budget, splits off a $140,000 bus purchase. Members voted unanimously to move the Burgess Elementary School budget forward at $14,360,650, a 2.14 percent increase Superintendent Deb called "pretty respectable," after agreeing to submit a separate warrant article raising $140,000 from free cash for a new school bus rather than folding it into operating costs. The move mirrors last year's approach, when a similar article was withdrawn after grant funding covered the bus instead.

Officials flagged declining enrollment, now at 806 students, as squeezing new Chapter 70 state aid to just $75 per student under "hold harmless" rules, while special education out-of-district tuition is projected near $1.4 million, offset by about $700,000 in state circuit breaker reimbursement. The capital plan grows to $203,000, prioritizing $125,000 in building projects over technology purchases.

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Source: the School Committee meeting of March 5, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.