Framingham residents and educators urge school committee to reject plan that would cut about 116 jobs

Dozens of parents, teachers and students packed the Framingham School Committee meeting on Jan. 21 to oppose a draft fiscal‑year 2027 budget that district staff say would eliminate roughly 116 full‑time equivalent positions to close an $8.9 million gap.

At the start of public comment, Jessica McGatrick, a District 4 resident and middle‑school theater educator, said reductions to performing‑arts staffing would “dilute presence, relationships, mentorship and trust” and urged the committee to “choose investment over inequity.” Several other speakers — classroom teachers, ESL staff, retirees and students — described performing arts, SAGE and ESL as essential supports for belonging and academic progress.

Lincoln Lynch, the district’s executive director for finance and operations, told the committee the current draft reflects the city’s proposed local contribution of $6.2 million and state/federal projections. That leaves the district with what he called an $8.9 million cap compared with an earlier $15.1 million “level‑service” need. Lynch said the proposal on the table would lower the operating request to match anticipated revenues and would include about 116 FTE reductions after identifying $1.3 million in expense savings and shifting some federal costs into the operating budget.

Speakers repeatedly urged alternatives to layoffs. Herb Jason, a resident, urged the mayor to use unused levy capacity and “raise the levy” to protect schools; former committee member Jeff Epstein told the panel the city had reduced local contributions after Student Opportunity Act funds arrived and urged the committee to demand more local support. Other community members pressed for use of stabilization or free‑cash reserves, temporary reinvestment of health‑care savings, and an aggressive joint push with the mayor and city council for additional revenue.

Committee members pressed district staff for program‑level details. Administrators said that in many cases the proposal aims to maintain program “shells” through consolidated or itinerant staffing rather than eliminating entire courses, and that roughly 40 of the 116 positions identified are current vacancies or upcoming retirements that would be prioritized for elimination before layoffs. They added that the Mandarin middle‑school offering could be continued for current students through high‑school teacher support plus enrichment and online options, while SAGE would be consolidated from eight elementary teachers to six — a change the administration said would require adjustments to screening and delivery.

Several committee members asked for a clearer packet for the Jan. 27 joint finance meeting with the city council, including both the earlier $15 million level‑service materials and the revised proposal; members requested a short cover memo explaining the two scenarios. A number of board members urged a tiered approach (what Lynch described as A‑to‑D scenarios) so the committee and mayor can jointly advocate for the positions they most want to preserve.

The meeting produced no vote on the budget itself; instead the committee agreed to continue the conversation, present materials to the city finance subcommittee next week, and continue seeking expense reductions, federal and revolving‑fund updates, and other revenue options before taking final action. The district will also monitor pending federal appropriations that could restore some Title funding and adjust the draft accordingly.

What’s next: the school committee and the city council finance subcommittees will meet Tuesday, Jan. 27, for a joint session on revenues and the budget; the administration said a final school committee vote is expected in the coming weeks as the city process proceeds.