Amherst School Budget Hearing Set for February 27

Jennifer Shiao’s School Committee Blog

Editor’s note: . Jennifer Shiao is a member of the Amherst School Committee. Her original posts can be found here.  An archive of her blog posts in The Indy can be found here.

The annual budget hearing for the Amherst elementary budget has been scheduled for February 27, starting at 6:30 p.m. with both in-person and virtual meeting options for members of the public.

First, if you aren’t already familiar with the fact that Amherst has two school districts (with two separate budgets), hop on over to this blog post I wrote a few years ago: Amherst has two School Committees?

As the recently elected chair of the Amherst School Committee, I am working closely with the superintendent’s office on the Amherst Budget Hearing. The “Budget Hearing” is an annual public meeting during which the proposed budget for the following year is presented, and members of the public can make comments and ask questions. This public meeting comes in advance of the Amherst School Committee voting on the budget, so it is a key time for the community to make their voices heard to the School Committee about the budget.

For FY26 (7/1/25 – 6/30/26), the Town of Amherst has indicated that they can provide funding that reflects a 3.5% increase over the previous year. However, a “level services” budget for the Amherst elementary school district would require 8.5% more in funding compared to last year. “Level services” means that the school district would not add any programming and not cut any programming. In other words, in order to maintain the same level of services for the next school year, an increase of 8.5% is required in funding, yet the Town of Amherst has indicated that they can only provide 3.5% more in funding. The difference between what the town has said it will provide and what the school district needs amounts to around $1.3 -$1.4 million.

One week prior to the February 27 Budget Hearing, the budget presentation and the full line-item budget will be attached to the meeting posting. These documents will provide details on how the district plans to address the shortfall.

I know that next week is February school break, and families may have plans and may not be paying attention to the school budget right now. But time marches on and the Amherst School Committee has deadlines we need to meet regarding approval of the budget, so that the Amherst Town Council can meet their own budget deadlines. My advice is to check the meeting posting after February 20 (Thursday of February break), to view the budget presentation and see what cuts will be proposed. Then, make plans to attend the February 27 Budget Hearing (6:30 pm start; in-person or virtual) to give the School Committee your input.

This blog reflects my own views about the Amherst and Amherst-Pelham Regional School Committees – it does not represent the view of the committees, the district, or the superintendent. This blog complies with Open Meeting Law, as long as a quorum of School Committee members do not engage in deliberations in the comments. Comments are welcome. I may respond to comments, but I will not respond to all comments. Sign up here using the “follow blog via email” form to be notified when I post a new entry.  You can email me at jennifer@jenniferamherst.org.