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Fitchburg Supertintendent's Discussion on the State's Foundation Budget

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I joined in to Fitchburg State University tonight with fellow councilor Walsh and many other elected officials tonight for the Fitchburg Public SchoolsDiscussion on the State's Foundation Budget in the Community of Fitchburg.
I live tweeted the responses @samsquailia & I will copy the tweet/photos here and post stats below:
**349:490 Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents a gap of 141 teachers needed in Fitchburg Public Schools not able to be afforded due to high Special Ed and Health Insurance spending unaccounted for in the Foundation Budget
**384:504 Leominster has a 120 teacher gap in needed teachers per fndn budget unable to be funded due to high spending needs in health insurance and special education spending Leominster Public Schools
** Gardner Mass Superintendent "Arts & Music & Guidance Counselors often first to be cut from school programming due to limited resources req'd to be spent on Health Insurance and Special Education" "The budget should be driven by the education, but too often the education is driven by the budget" "Students that come from poverty need additional services" "Our largest issue is poverty"
** Lunenburg, MA Public Schools have a $2.3M gap in Special Ed Budget, and a $2.3M gap in Health Insurance budget, requiring cuts in teacher funding, books and other funds
** Winchendon, Massachusetts actual staffing needs for Special Education far exceeds the allotment by the Foundation Budget. Top right graphs.
**"When I see the resources wealthy communities can provide their students, I am disheartened...it's discriminatory what the State is doing" -Mother of 4 in Public Schools
**Call to action: "What emerges...is that the Commonwealth has a duty to provide an education for all its children, rich and poor, in every city and town...at the public school level, and this duty is designed...to serve the interest of the children..."
** Increase in Chapter 70 funding to our local school budgets with full funding of the FBRC: Heslth Insurance, Special Ed, ELL and Low Income subsidy. @FitchburgPS @FitchburgMass would receive $12.8M additional to our school budget

I highly recommend watching the Superintendent Forum on Education Spending ---and the discussion on the need in increases in the budget for equal education for students in Massachusetts.
School spending and need for additional resources were discussed and represented by Leominster, Fitchburg, Gardner, Lunenburg, Worcteser, Framingham, Winchendon, Clinton, Ayer-Shirley and more.

FATV recorded the event, you can watch it here:

Public Education Funding Information Update. January 8. 2019 Fitchburg State University

 
 

I discussed the Bill and the end of the session with Senator Tran a couple months ago for more background info, starts around 31:30 minutes:

 
 

Sam Squailia