[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6082125,"mediaKeyId","2939213-0ecc534db52079f5f8e61a98cc27e6d5","parentId",2939213,"title","District describes ESSER late-liquidation request and $47 million figure; staff say classroom operations not immediately affected","audioSeconds",119,"startMs",2207000,"endMs",2326000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2939213-0ecc534db52079f5f8e61a98cc27e6d5&start=2207&end=2326","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2939213-0ecc534db52079f5f8e61a98cc27e6d5/thumbnail_2207000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6082125/Massachusetts/District-describes-ESSER-late-liquidation-request-and-47-million-figure-staff-say-classroom-operations-not-immediately-affected","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6082125-09703df67138229217efae7b4a199ffa/orig.mp4?Expires=1770506895&Signature=gefHBXmo-SvyqB3LUb8lqFFfMCGxVkPJWpkt~2mfS~gzignTL7uTxgIyJhfldpCIbLvw-ejdezq-qSeMyRRm3QP23J7pNlhIUzS772M2HqarN5f0t~tnwfxox5i4GvqRnTN~BQRHBifMYoxsXevqiUzoAkF-2ZsUmppJ~JAJlfGSrG6ncad5sfSvKCVVZw9jhUyloINpBNEPySkeYB7MVLRHd1tLwT-aj0~sdhsGGIdeHZqtVuPEwl4wtykRnPV50P2m3-A3a~pdAwYueSzvfKaITDYw1WDxXi6k0NkZ9bG9eDeBv7t-r9SMpxtWZmMAQtBgW9swhDwTnwrP1dq-7w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Springfield Public Schools, MA","date","2025-04-10T00:00:00Z","article","Superintendent Dr. Dunnell and Chief Pat Roach briefed the subcommittee on an item labeled in the agenda as a possible $47 million cut related to federal ESSER grant funding and late-liquidation reimbursements.

Roach said the district applied for roughly $58 million in late-liquidation reimbursements tied to capital projects (HVAC upgrades, outdoor classrooms and playgrounds, an amphitheater at Scitech, an auditorium and gym work at Central, dishwashers and other site work). He said the district has paid roughly $54 million of those costs and has about $4.4 million unspent that remains associated with work not yet completed (the Scitech amphitheater was cited as one remaining major project). Roach told the subcommittee he expects DESE to continue processing reimbursements and that the state has indicated it will contest federal decisions denying some ESSER reimbursements; the district has a draw window opening April 20 to request additional funds.

Crucially, Roach and the superintendent told committee members that, because of earlier local decisions to avoid using ESSER funds for recurring salaries, the district does not expect an immediate impact to classroom staffing or day-to-day instruction if reimbursements are delayed. If federal reimbursement were ultimately denied for already-spent projects, the district said it would coordinate with city officials on how to address any resulting shortfall (bonds or other financing were discussed as possibilities) but emphasized there would be no immediate staff layoffs tied to the current situation.

Why it matters: the ESSER late-liquidation issue relates to large capital projects funded by federal COVID-relief grants; uncertainty about federal reimbursement timing could affect capital timelines and city-level finances but — according to district staff — should not directly affect classroom operations unless reimbursements are formally denied and city financing choices change.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","SPS: Budget & Finance Subcommittee Meeting 4/8/25","oneSentenceSummary","Superintendent and finance staff described Springfield’s late-liquidation requests for ESSER capital projects and said the district has paid most invoices and is continuing to seek reimbursement; staff said the reported $47 million figure on state-level actions refers to outstanding reimbursements rather than an immediate classroom budget cut.","taxTitle","Springfield Public Schools, School Boards, Massachusetts","taxId",38504,"location","Massachusetts","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6082131,"Subcommittee recommends four school grants to full school committee, including Project Lead The Way awards",472,9000,481000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2939213-0ecc534db52079f5f8e61a98cc27e6d5&start=9&end=481","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2939213-0ecc534db52079f5f8e61a98cc27e6d5/thumbnail_9000.jpg","/articles/6082131/Massachusetts/Subcommittee-recommends-four-school-grants-to-full-school-committee-including-Project-Lead-The-Way-awards","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6082131-3672ac4f9d2555bc4de6761fa3e17bb2/orig.mp4?Expires=1770506895&Signature=mAWd-FwDoK45rWcIJyvc0~3K83bsyI-4AELgPNfsm0hfirADh2CfdEBj9-E3WgUdjNbdCh8862VM7G3wZeNOGRqmc1eVEQPSTLy1LZgXm-HNdaWwtc9Xtap5wbp-ZPzoDzm05m-o3gkRcQ17QFUCm313gxg-xHQim36jktcIpdhqBCSWBIksRnW7-GtfQmxiX3doTn8Mere2bqOlLfiSo9QaL-kc0kmppKfeGQLdoqZQnS1Aez4kEX0loS7xxyGQqVopXKUkc-VnOEzqyMVrKtqtMBm-oDR9nGdt0-HRF3~bJkPSBJLuwgL5PH2mmh89hGGIii8HZk~a7PZG38M4zw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Budget & Finance Subcommittee voted to recommend four grant awards to the full school committee, advancing funds for teacher professional learning and career-pathway programs.

The items recommended to the full committee were:

- $16,400 from the TNTP Reimagine Teaching grant for Duggan Academy (professional learning on high-quality instructional materials and implementation supports). The grant period referenced in discussion included a window noted in materials as October 4, 2024–June 30, 2025; committee members clarified the award is a one-time grant and reimbursements would follow approval.

- $16,000 from a Project Lead The Way grant to Central High School for professional development in engineering-related course work intended to support a middle-to-high school career pathway.

- $30,000 from a Project Lead The Way Gateway grant to Kylie Academy for grades 6–8 to build hands-on STEM and career-focused classroom experiences (coding, robotics, engineering concepts); principal Imani Hines was present via Zoom to answer questions.

- $12,250 from a Project Lead The Way High School Engineering grant to Central High School to support teacher–student collaborative engineering coursework.

Each motion was made and seconded on the record; the chair reported “more than sufficient votes” and each item will appear on the next full-school-committee agenda for final action.

Why it matters: the grants fund professional learning and expand career-and-technical pathways at multiple district schools, including middle-school gateway programming and high-school engineering coursework.","The Budget & Finance Subcommittee voted to recommend four grant expenditures — TNTP Reimagine Teaching ($16,400), two Project Lead The Way grants ($16,000 and $12,250) and a Project Lead The Way Gateway grant ($30,000) — to the full Springfield Public Schools committee.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6082135,"Superintendent presents FY 2026 recommended budget, highlights student-centered priorities and $48 million for school-based allocations",1481,774000,2255000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2939213-0ecc534db52079f5f8e61a98cc27e6d5&start=774&end=2255","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2939213-0ecc534db52079f5f8e61a98cc27e6d5/thumbnail_774000.jpg","/articles/6082135/Massachusetts/Superintendent-presents-FY-2026-recommended-budget-highlights-student-centered-priorities-and-48-million-for-school-based-allocations","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6082135-dc2975a1f804535dca3e7af3bda1f145/orig.mp4?Expires=1770506895&Signature=FqnqJmoObVf3lphh~CYzLrZRenY9rs-IIV6C1G0fHrEFTnjZowENrYYYj1RWII26aYsXFsyNAmCO0t6wB6oGVl2uS1b1Bk6f8sz~Qzxb~Lqe6ozZf1wVTuEfY8RBpq4tFEbry1bdHwcMNugni99DR7XjLcT6pQeYWIGUJTFEIaX47L9d3d6vg8FkPDQ3~-1oRDPp217MIm1zfkRxycf-f1PhtueHbCZoMVH7gSSIj9UYWrqHiYkGe3Lyh29PGFQbNmNdFBfIB9iWCAQ-3F4lHyM5DMkJYInk6h-ebW72CJvh0tfdKaam4bR~5nrmfSBSBVFUM2VIBHr~nVm5C8uyUw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Superintendent Dr. Dunnell and Chief of Finance and Operations Pat Roach presented Springfield Public Schools’ recommended FY 2026 budget to the Budget & Finance Subcommittee, emphasizing investments tied to four district priorities and a large direct allocation to schools.

The proposal frames budget increases around early literacy, middle-school transformation, college and career readiness (grades 9–12) and postsecondary success. Pat Roach told the subcommittee the draft is balanced and called out specific expense changes: salaries and benefits increases, higher utilities and transportation costs, and growth in special-education out-of-district tuition. The presentation also showed districtwide FTEs at about 5,465.

Why it matters: the recommended budget directs most new dollars to schools and to programs the superintendent identified as core priorities. The package would shift recurring resources into school operations and add positions in postsecondary counseling, special education, and home-visit coordination, among others.

Key elements and figures cited by staff

- School-based allocations: the presentation lists more than $48,000,000 allocated directly to schools for local decision-making, including Student Opportunity Act dollars ($31,600,000 reported on the slides), Title I funds (about $5,500,000), extended learning time allocations ($2,900,000) and other targeted school allocations (books, supplies, vocational/chapter 74 funding).

- Personnel and benefits: staff reported an overall salaries increase (cited as roughly $17.4 million) to cover cost-of-living adjustments and contractual steps; health insurance was cited as increasing roughly $2.7 million and city retirement contributions about $2.8 million.

- Special education: the out-of-district tuition line was cited as rising by about 7.3% ($779,007); the special-education budget overall was described as growing ~11% with added district autism specialists, full-time ETLs and paraeducators, plus added speech and assistive-technology staff.

- Curriculum and instruction: the budget reallocates several curriculum costs previously paid from grants into the general fund, increases early-literacy funding (including summer literacy/intervention and software for pre-K), and funds pilot curriculum (OpenSciEd). New professional development and stipends (for CPR certification coordinators, for example) were also listed.

- Information technology and data: a one-time investment of $400,000 for a data warehouse capability and analytics was described as a strategic IT investment to improve district and school-level reporting and to meet new reporting requirements.

Questions from the committee and staff clarifications

Committee members asked about charter and school-choice tuition totals and the district’s lack of direct control over those disbursements; Roach provided a breakout on the record showing charter tuition of about $104,108,623 and school-choice dollars of about $5,000,964 (with a $331,331 special-education assessment included). Members also asked about the effect of “schools returning from the empowerment zone” and were told any return would affect a following fiscal year and is not included in FY 2026 numbers.

Committee members asked about the district’s closed pools and the possibility of restoring swim instruction. Dr. Balsch (staff) explained pools were closed because of insufficient lifeguard-certified staff and required certifications and said reopening would require recruiting certified lifeguards and collaboration with external partners.

Implementation notes and next steps

Staff said some program details (for example, school-level staffing allocation sheets and breakdowns by chief) are in a secondary document and available on request. The subcommittee agreed to bring the recommended budget forward for a formal recommendation to the full school committee at a subsequent meeting.","Superintendent and finance staff presented the FY 2026 recommended budget to the Budget & Finance Subcommittee, outlining increases in salaries, districtwide investments in early literacy, middle-school transformation, college and career readiness, and a $48 million-plus direct allocation to schools.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

District describes ESSER late-liquidation request and $47 million figure; staff say classroom operations not immediately affected

Subcommittee recommends four school grants to full school committee, including Project Lead The Way awards

Superintendent presents FY 2026 recommended budget, highlights student-centered priorities and $48 million for school-based allocations