Westford leaders propose outreach initiative after district survey finds widespread budget confusion

Alex Svensson and Emily Collins reported that leaders from the select board, the school committee and the finance committee met April 28 to consider how to address resident confusion about school budget materials. A recent Westford Public Schools survey of families drew 361 responses, and hosts said just 19% of respondents found school budget information easy to find or understand; roughly 80% reported some confusion.

Officials described a proposed year-long community engagement initiative that would include representatives from the select board, the school committee and the townDEI committee. The effort would aim to conduct targeted outreach and listening sessions with underrepresented and less-engaged groups, release clearer budget summaries, share information earlier in the cycle and expand use of more accessible communication channels.

Reporters said officials noted many residents currently rely on multiple information sources (the district website, public meetings and social media) and raised concerns about consistency and reliability across platforms. Survey data noted newer residents were less likely to follow the school budget: about half of those who had recently moved to town reported not following the budget at all versus about 18% of residents who had lived in Westford for more than two decades.

Town leaders told the hosts the engagement initiative would return for formal consideration and possible approval at a future meeting; no formal motion or vote on creating the initiative was recorded on air.