HINGHAM — Oct. 19, 2026 — The Hingham School Committee last Monday approved a three-year memorandum of agreement with Unit C of the Hingham Education Association, running July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029. Custodians, leads and maintenance workers get a 3% increase each year plus per-hour raises that vary by position, terms a committee member said keep the district within its 3.5% budgeting target.
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Member Kerry Ni, who outlined the terms before the vote, said the first year combines per-hour raises for custodians, leads and maintenance workers with a 3% increase. Years two and three each add 50 cents an hour for leads and maintenance workers and another 3% increase.
Ni said the process started in March and that, beyond salary, the agreement updates contract language to bring Unit C in line with the district’s other HEA units and equalizes benefits across them. The committee had discussed the agreement in executive session, she said. The meeting opened with a roll call to enter executive session on collective bargaining strategy and to approve Sept. 28 executive session minutes.
Chair Jen Benham took up the agreement ahead of the policy business because the Select Board chair was attending to vote on it.
Our custodians, they play an essential role in keeping our schools clean, safe, and welcoming to staff and students.
— Jen Benham, School Committee Chair 14:07
No one raised a question, and Benham announced the motion passed after the roll call.
Superintendent Katie Roberts presented the Oct. 1 enrollment in a new format that counts every preschool student in district buildings, including Kids in Action students, rather than only the K-12 and integrated-preschool counts DESE uses. Roberts said the fuller picture matters as the town discusses building projects and capacity.
Roberts reported roughly 1,600 students in grades K-5, or nearly 1,857 including all pre-K students; 796 at the middle school; and 980 at the high school. Counting integrated pre-K through grade 12, the district has 3,542 students.
When we also include our KIA students, we’re at 3,633. So that’s the number of students that are actually educated in our buildings.
— Superintendent Katie Roberts 25:02
Another 51 students are served out of district, 10 are homeschooled and seven attend vocational-technical or agricultural schools. Ni asked that future reports also show a separate K-12 figure so they align with earlier reports, and Roberts agreed.
The committee accepted Plymouth River Elementary School’s 2026-2028 school improvement plan. Principal Gregory Lamothe said the plan, written with the school council in May, sets three goals: supporting the rollout of the Bridges math program through professional development, extending PBIS practices built on the school’s polite, responsible and safe expectations, and strengthening communication with families. Lamothe said first-grade turnout at curriculum nights was low this year and that the school wants to revive a reading program for preschool-age children that lapsed over the past two years.
School Committee member Tim Miller-Dempsey asked whether teachers can still challenge capable students under Bridges. The principal said they can and that fourth and fifth grades still offer Math Plus.
