Duxbury School Committee Confronts Impact of 18.9 Staff Positions Lost in Budget Reductions
DUXBURY - October 22 - Duxbury Public Schools leaders presented a sobering assessment Tuesday night of how last year’s $2.6 million budget deficit has affected students, teachers, and administrators across the district, detailing increased class sizes, restricted course offerings, and delayed technology support that administrators warned could undermine the community’s expectations for quality education.
The Full Story
Superintendent Dr. Danielle Klingaman and Assistant Superintendent Dr. Beth Wilcox walked the school committee through the operational consequences of eliminating 18.9 full-time positions after the March 2024 override failed. The district had requested $46.9 million for fiscal year 2026 but operated with just over $44 million instead. To close the gap, the district reinstated full-day kindergarten tuition at a lower rate than previously charged, eliminated teaching and administrative positions, and cut technology and library resources.
“Our work is to serve students and families, but our capacity to do the work well has been diminished,” Dr. Wilcox told the committee. “The staff focus and morale have also been affected as we had teachers who found work in other districts because of some of the instability that we had last spring.”
At the elementary level, Alden School lost two classroom teachers, reducing from 31 classrooms to 29. Chandler School lost one classroom teacher, going from 10 classes per grade to nine in one grade level. Average class sizes increased across most grades, with some Alden classes now at 22 to 23 students compared to 20 last year in third grade. The district also reduced from two full-time elementary curriculum supervisors to one part-time position serving both schools.
Erin Wiesehahn, Chandler principal, explained the immediate impact: “With Sarah Milner only being at our building two and a half days, it is really challenging for them to, if their PLC falls on a day when she’s not in the building and they have questions... Sarah is really the expert and she’s been really deep into this the whole time. And so it is definitely a loss when teachers are having to just wait to get their questions answered.”
The middle school reduced 2.7 teachers and 1.5 tutors, creating what administrators called “restrictive schedules.” Thirty-six students were unable to take Code Academy due to scheduling constraints, and 18 students could not take their preferred or recommended music level. Thirty-seven students are taking double physical education instead of an art or STEM elective, and five sections of art were eliminated.
At the high school, the cuts were most severe. The school eliminated 6.3 teaching positions, resulting in 41 courses being cut and only 68% of students receiving their first-choice elective, down from 75% last year. Five music electives were eliminated, with only six music electives running this year compared to 11 last year. Theater classes were reduced from five to three. Co-taught class sizes increased, and some courses now combine multiple levels in a single classroom, requiring teachers to differentiate instruction across AP, honors, and college prep simultaneously.
“There were five music electives eliminated. There were 11 music electives running last year, and there are only six running this year,” Dr. Wilcox reported. “With less courses, it makes it more challenging for students to register for their preferred elective courses.”
The elimination of the instructional technology director and reduction of the data administrator from full-time to 0.6 has created significant operational problems. Average technology support ticket response times increased from one day to three to five days. From July 1st to September 22nd alone, faculty submitted 1,778 technology tickets. The district manages over 125 educational technology platforms, 10,000 devices, and nearly 4,000 network users with a team of six staff members.
Dr. Wilcox noted that the first days of school were disrupted by a Schoology malfunction that left teachers unable to establish classroom routines properly. “The first few days of school are extremely important for us as we establish routines, as we establish our expectations for students,” she said. “When we have something as important as Schoology, which is the platform that our secondary teachers use to communicate with their students, that can create a lot of confusion and anxiety.”
The curriculum supervisor reductions had cascading effects. At the secondary level, supervisors went from four positions covering English, social studies, science, and math to two positions covering STEM and humanities. Each supervisor now manages multiple departments, in one case three departments, reducing their capacity for classroom observations, teacher support, data analysis, and technology assistance. Curriculum supervisors also lost direct contact with students, as they previously taught classes or supported intervention programs.
Dr. Wilcox explained the time burden on administrators who remain, noting that formal teacher evaluations alone require a minimum of 66 hours per year for an administrator with 12 professional status teachers and three non-professional teachers. Some administrators now evaluate 18 or more teachers, requiring 78 hours just for formal evaluation time, not including instructional assistants, tutors, and other staff.
Resources also took a hit. Alden School saw a 10% decrease in library supplies, meaning no new books will be purchased this year. Teachers and students lost access to online platforms including Rosetta Stone, Newsela, and Pear Deck. Dr. Klingaman emphasized the hidden cost of eliminating educational technology tools that teachers had spent years integrating into their curriculum.
“When we have teachers that have these amazing programs and units that they’ve created and when something gets taken away, you’re just, it’s so overwhelming to think all the time you put into it,” Dr. Klingaman said. “It impacts the morale and it’s just, it’s hard to keep hearing all these things. Not only do you have additional responsibilities, but your job is going to be a little bit harder this year with something that was already going really well.”
School Committee member Matt Gambino pressed on whether the district could realistically achieve its ambitious school improvement goals given the constraints. “Ten percent reduction in DHS course offerings is in conflict with a strategic initiative to expand real-world learning opportunities,” he observed, referring to the high school’s goal of having 100% of students agree that teachers show how lessons relate to life outside of school.
Dr. Klingaman acknowledged the tension, stating that teachers would never allow students to suffer regardless of budget cuts. “You only have one chance at fourth grade. You’re not going to say, well, the override didn’t pass, so I’m going to lower my kindergarten expectations, because for the kids’ sake, they have to be ready for the next grade,” she said. “So what we do is we hear when services are suffering, when people are frustrated... and so we’re dealing with dissatisfaction in seeing our operations not be at the level that we all expect.”
The superintendent also revealed that the reductions led to “bumping” scenarios where even small position cuts of 0.2 or 0.4 FTE resulted in losing several experienced teachers to other districts. “We lost a few really strong staff members to Duxbury Public Schools because of even small cuts,” she said. “No one that’s reduced with their FTE wants to leave, and I think they just can’t live not knowing if they’re going to be able to pay their bills and count on their salaries.”
Looking ahead, Dr. Wilcox emphasized uncertainty about the full impact: “This presentation was really started in the middle of September, and data was gathered in the middle of September, and we continue to refine it, but we don’t know the impacts because with one change, there is a domino effect that happens.”
School Committee Chair Kellie Bresnehan connected the discussion to the broader community expectation. “We always talk about Duxbury has high expectations for the students, right, and the school should be a pride for the community, but I really like, would like people to think about if you work in private industry, do you want to have your boss be let go, and now, you used to manage 30 people, now you manage 60, but you’re not getting paid anymore for it?” she said.
Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Caitlan Sheehan summed up the choice facing the district: “We are at a pivotal point where how we’ve always done things will no longer be the Duxbury Public Schools as we know it and remember it fondly. And so I think we are at a junction point to decide, do we wanna be Duxbury Public Schools and continue to have high expectations and continue to have brilliant students and incredible educators who get paid what they deserve? Or do we wanna be someone else?”
In other business, the committee heard school improvement plan updates from elementary and high school administrators, received a diversity and inclusion update including news of a $30,000 state grant for hate and bias prevention programs, and reviewed beginning-of-year student assessment data. The committee also approved adding liaison and subcommittee updates as a standing agenda item and scheduled two budget listening sessions for November 13th and December 3rd in advance of the December 10th budget hearing.
Why It Matters
The presentation revealed that Duxbury students are now learning in larger classes with fewer course options, particularly at the middle and high schools. Parents should expect longer wait times for technology issues to be resolved, reduced access to elective courses their children prefer, and fewer administrative resources to support curriculum implementation and teacher development. The staff reductions also mean less individual attention for struggling students and constrained capacity for the district to respond to emerging educational needs. With the district already projecting a deficit for the upcoming fiscal year, residents face critical decisions about whether to support increased education funding or accept further service reductions that may fundamentally alter the character of Duxbury’s schools.
Meeting Minutes
Key Motions & Votes
Motion: Approve consent agenda including meeting minutes from 10-8-24, accounts payable warrants 15 and 16, and FY24 end-of-year audit report. Outcome: Approved. Vote: Unanimous. (Timestamp: 50:20)
Motion: Add liaison and subcommittee updates as a standing agenda item under new business. Outcome: Approved. Vote: Unanimous. (Timestamp: 2:48:42)
Motion: Hold two budget listening sessions on November 13th and December 3rd. Outcome: Approved. Vote: Unanimous. (Timestamp: 2:54:33)
Public Comment
No members of the public were present for public comment.
What’s Next
The November 5th school committee meeting will include the preliminary operating budget presentation for fiscal year 2027. The committee will also discuss the format for the December 10th budget hearing and review FAQ materials to be used at the November 13th and December 3rd budget listening sessions. The policy subcommittee will bring the graduation requirements and competency determination policies back for a second reading and vote at a future meeting. Administrators will continue monitoring the impacts of budget reductions throughout the school year and will provide updated data as the domino effects become clearer.