School committee asks administration for budget and sliding-scale study after Summer Fun rate proposal
January 28, 2025 | Medford Public Schools, School Boards, Massachusetts
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Medford School Committee members voted unanimously to ask district administrators to return at the next meeting with an updated rate card and a budget analysis of the Summer Fun program that includes sliding-scale tuition options and staffing cost scenarios.
The request follows a presentation by Assistant Superintendent Peter Cushing and Summer Fun Director Anthony Petrellas, who described the program as a six-week day camp that runs roughly 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., provides free meals through the district’s nutrition program and typically uses the Missatuck site and the Tufts pool for swim activities. The committee discussed a proposed resident rate increase from $200 per week (the long-standing rate) to $275 per week, with a nonresident rate proposed at $300 per week and no change to the counselor-in-training rate.
The committee said the decision matters because Summer Fun is intended to remain an affordable option for families while also covering personnel and operating costs. Members pressed administrators for details on enrollment, staffing, and how additional revenue would be used to support raises for the director and assistant directors, whose pay the committee heard has not increased since 2014.
Cushing and Petrellas described enrollment and finances. Petrellas told the committee that in recent years the camp’s out-of-district participants were “no more than 10 kids” over a summer and that the program’s maximum weekly capacity was about 120. He said the program operates as self-funded; staff described last year’s rough figures as roughly $120,000 in revenue and about $100,000 in expenses, producing about a $25,000 surplus. Petrellas said, “I never turn anybody away. Honestly, I've never turned anyone away.”
Committee members asked for a clearer budget and for options that would protect affordability for lower-income families. Several members proposed exploring a sliding scale (with the finance office using the district’s after-school sliding-scale model as a template) and asked administrators to model alternate flat rates such as $225 or $250 to compare against the $275 proposal. Members also raised operational items the administration should include: the camp’s planned dates (staff said the current schedule would run from June 30, with July 4 observed, through the second week of August), how the program will manage walk-ins, and contingency planning given that the McGlynn and Andrews schools will be offline for HVAC work this summer.
The committee also discussed registration logistics. Cushing said the district is working with communications staff and the finance office to move toward online registration and card payments, noting “check and money order is not how things operate in 2025.” Committee members framed online registration as a priority for timely enrollment and to reduce cash-handling burdens on staff.
After discussion, the committee approved a motion directing the administration to prepare (1) a detailed Summer Fun budget showing projected enrollment, personnel and nonpersonnel costs, and the staffing levels those costs would support; (2) a revised rate card that models a small flat increase and at least one sliding-scale option tied to the district’s existing after-school thresholds; and (3) recommendations about registration timing, online payment readiness and whether any date changes are feasible. The motion passed by roll call, 7–0.
The committee will review the administration’s report and rate recommendations at the next meeting before finalizing rates and opening registration.
The request follows a presentation by Assistant Superintendent Peter Cushing and Summer Fun Director Anthony Petrellas, who described the program as a six-week day camp that runs roughly 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., provides free meals through the district’s nutrition program and typically uses the Missatuck site and the Tufts pool for swim activities. The committee discussed a proposed resident rate increase from $200 per week (the long-standing rate) to $275 per week, with a nonresident rate proposed at $300 per week and no change to the counselor-in-training rate.
The committee said the decision matters because Summer Fun is intended to remain an affordable option for families while also covering personnel and operating costs. Members pressed administrators for details on enrollment, staffing, and how additional revenue would be used to support raises for the director and assistant directors, whose pay the committee heard has not increased since 2014.
Cushing and Petrellas described enrollment and finances. Petrellas told the committee that in recent years the camp’s out-of-district participants were “no more than 10 kids” over a summer and that the program’s maximum weekly capacity was about 120. He said the program operates as self-funded; staff described last year’s rough figures as roughly $120,000 in revenue and about $100,000 in expenses, producing about a $25,000 surplus. Petrellas said, “I never turn anybody away. Honestly, I've never turned anyone away.”
Committee members asked for a clearer budget and for options that would protect affordability for lower-income families. Several members proposed exploring a sliding scale (with the finance office using the district’s after-school sliding-scale model as a template) and asked administrators to model alternate flat rates such as $225 or $250 to compare against the $275 proposal. Members also raised operational items the administration should include: the camp’s planned dates (staff said the current schedule would run from June 30, with July 4 observed, through the second week of August), how the program will manage walk-ins, and contingency planning given that the McGlynn and Andrews schools will be offline for HVAC work this summer.
The committee also discussed registration logistics. Cushing said the district is working with communications staff and the finance office to move toward online registration and card payments, noting “check and money order is not how things operate in 2025.” Committee members framed online registration as a priority for timely enrollment and to reduce cash-handling burdens on staff.
After discussion, the committee approved a motion directing the administration to prepare (1) a detailed Summer Fun budget showing projected enrollment, personnel and nonpersonnel costs, and the staffing levels those costs would support; (2) a revised rate card that models a small flat increase and at least one sliding-scale option tied to the district’s existing after-school thresholds; and (3) recommendations about registration timing, online payment readiness and whether any date changes are feasible. The motion passed by roll call, 7–0.
The committee will review the administration’s report and rate recommendations at the next meeting before finalizing rates and opening registration.
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