Community members at the March 24 Ways and Means hearing urged the council to prioritize multiple Boston Public Schools needs in the FY26 budget, including transportation for before- and after-school programs, improved school meals, more paraprofessionals and mental-health services, and facility upgrades.

Jenny Masselin, a Hyde Park homeowner and parent, said many families lack transportation that would allow students to attend extracurricular or after-school programs. “If we want to prevent delinquency, if we want to make sure our kids are good kids, we need to be able to provide transportation for them,” Masselin said.

Speakers also described waste in school lunches and called for changes so students can take single items without discarding the rest. “I've watched them. They just took the apple or the milk and dumped everything else in the trash,” Masselin said, describing food waste she observed while working as a lunch monitor.

Advocates and youth organizations asked for more paraprofessionals to support students with special needs and for additional school-based therapists who understand students’ cultural and trauma backgrounds. Hakim Sutherland, director of REAP, called for higher funding for mentor programs and improved school facilities, including high-efficiency air filtration in older buildings.

Some speakers tied school priorities to larger workforce and technology goals. Andre Brown, a veteran and former networks specialist, proposed a Boston Public Schools data center or other investments in artificial intelligence training to prepare students for changing labor markets; he framed the proposal as a long-term investment in higher education pathways.

Councilors responded that school funding is a central budget priority and noted the end of certain federal pandemic-era grants will increase pressure on local funding. “We were already going to be facing coming off of all of our ESSER funding spent at the school level,” Councilor Erin Murphy said.

No formal budget allocations were decided at the hearing; the testimony will be part of the committee record as the council and administration negotiate the FY26 mayoral proposal.