Spencer-East Brookfield School Committee Approves Nearly $600,000 in Emergency Mid-Year Budget Fixes

PEPPERELL -- April 15, 2026, Spencer-East Brookfield School Committee votes to patch fiscal 2026 budget with nearly $600,000 in transfers and reserve funds. The committee unanimously approved $297,102 in mid-year line-item transfers and a $300,638 draw from excess-and-deficiency funds to cover a 66-percent jump in retiree health insurance, $136,000 in unanticipated electricity costs at the new David Prouty High School, $43,354 in property insurance increases, and a $36,000 mandatory upgrade to the district's Siemens energy management software. Business Administrator Gary Souter noted that declining charter school tuition charges, a result of the state's March enrollment reconciliation, provided unexpected relief, saying "that was a surprise to me as well." Superintendent Dr. Jeff Harhee warned that the fiscal 2027 budget, which cuts more than $1 million district-wide, will leave the district with only two instructional coaches in September, down from a planned four, while an estimated $30,000 additional cut to Title I funding remains unconfirmed. Spencer residents face a Proposition 2½ override vote on May 12, and a Select Board representative identified as Dr. Hicks urged all committee members to campaign publicly, calling it the district's best remaining option after years of cuts, and the first such vote since a successful 2006 override.