PEMBROKE - December 2 - The Pembroke School Committee received its first look at the fiscal year 2027 maintenance of effort budget on Tuesday, with Superintendent Erin Obey presenting a projected increase of $823,679 over the current year’s budget. The FY27 maintenance of effort budget—which represents the cost of continuing current operations at next year’s prices—would total $41,280,729, compared to the FY26 budget of $40,457,050.
The Full Story
Superintendent Erin Obey emphasized the preliminary nature of the December budget presentation, noting that numerous assumptions underpin the projections. Chief among these uncertainties are ongoing contract negotiations with the Pembroke Teachers Association, which remain unresolved for fiscal year 2026 and are incorporated as assumptions in the FY27 budget. “There is an assumption in our fiscal year 27 budget for those bargaining agreements, as well as a reminder that our fiscal year 26 budget is still not certified because we are still using just an assumption on those bargaining agreements,” Obey explained. “So there’s like an assumption of an assumption in fiscal year 27.”
The superintendent expressed optimism that financial packages would be finalized soon. “I am optimistic that when we meet again on next Monday, December 8th, that we will be finalizing our financial packages and we’ll be able to come back to you with a more concrete number,” she said. The budget negotiations subcommittee is scheduled to meet December 8th with the goal of bringing a ratification package to the committee’s next meeting in December.
Special education costs represent a significant variable in the budget projection. The superintendent projected approximately a $212,000 increase in special education tuition costs, based on the Operational Services Division’s preliminary estimate of a 3.04% rate increase. However, this figure won’t be finalized until the first Wednesday in February. Despite this increase, Pembroke has seen encouraging trends in out-of-district special education placements. The FY26 budget projects costs 3.5% below the previous year, with FY27 expected to decrease another 4%.
Transportation costs also factor prominently in the budget increase. Next year would mark the first year of a two-year option period with First Student, the district’s bus contractor. The transportation contract increase is calculated using a four-year rolling average, though the district is considering going out to bid this spring. Obey noted that while First Student has been the only bidder on Pembroke’s transportation contracts, the last competitive bid process resulted in rates 3% lower than the company’s initial quote for the option years.
The district plans to continue its practice of special education tuition pre-buy, which allows using current fiscal year funds to prepay the following year’s tuitions. Pembroke has successfully employed this strategy for the past six years. Circuit breaker reimbursement, which helps offset extraordinary special education costs, remains a significant revenue source. For FY27, the district will use approximately $2 million in reimbursements received during FY26, based on 75% reimbursement for instructional expenses and 61.36% for transportation.
The superintendent acknowledged that the budget situation would be significantly worse without supplemental funding approved at fall town meeting. “We would be $457,000 of a greater difference if we did not get that supplemental funding at town meeting,” Obey noted. Without that assistance, the increase would have approached $1.2 to $1.3 million. The supplemental funding combined revenue from new growth with increases in Chapter 70 state education aid.
The timeline for budget development includes waiting for the first look at Chapter 70 funding, typically released the third Wednesday in January. The committee will work with the select board’s budget subcommittee through joint meetings and collaborate with department heads on detailed budget presentations. School Committee Chair David Boyle emphasized the transparency of the early budget release, telling viewers: “People say, you didn’t tell us this. Yes, we’re telling you this now, and it’s December. It’s the beginning of the process, but I’ve heard people say, we didn’t know about this. I’m going to say respectfully, you’re probably not paying attention.”
Beyond budget discussions, the committee addressed several operational matters. The committee unanimously approved a waiver request to the Massachusetts Secondary School Administrators Association to allow eighth-grade students to participate in high school winter cheerleading. Superintendent Obey explained that the winter cheerleading squad has only four students, short of the eight required for competition. “Youth cheer in Pembroke is very strong,” Obey noted, adding that participation tends to decline at the high school level due to increased activity options, particularly for winter cheerleading compared to the fall season which includes competitions and football sideline activities.
The meeting’s centerpiece involved comprehensive School Improvement Plan presentations from all five building principals, covering the district’s elementary schools, middle school, and high school. Each principal outlined progress and initiatives across five key areas: achievement, social-emotional learning, technology, facilities and learning environment, and communication.
At Hobomock Elementary School, Principal Ashley Cross highlighted the continued rollout of writing and FOSS science curricula across classrooms, with professional development time dedicated to these programs. The school has implemented a “Student of the Week” program recognizing one student per homeroom based on monthly core values, emphasizing intrinsic motivation. Unified sports continues with a hybrid best buddies program for fourth through sixth graders, including partnerships with middle schools for activities like cornhole and basketball. The school recently completed its playground project with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in late October.
Bryantville Elementary School Principal Jennifer Simmons reported focusing on DIBELS assessments for kindergarten through second grade and iReady for grades three through five, with particular emphasis on tracking longitudinal student growth. The school is working to ensure proper utilization of digital learning programs, with teachers implementing creative incentive systems when students complete recommended lesson quantities. Simmons indicated the school will survey parents about communication effectiveness, modeling efforts previously conducted at North Pembroke and Hobomock. The building recently completed a gym roof repair project.
North Pembroke Elementary School Principal Michael Murphy emphasized preparing preschool students for academic success through a proposed spring “boot camp” aligned with the screening process. The initiative, developed collaboratively with teachers and paraprofessionals, would provide families with information about expected skills and “to-go bags” with educational games and activities. “I don’t believe that parents, when they send their kids to preschool, have a total understanding of what we kind of expect those skills that they’re coming in with already,” Murphy explained. The school has implemented a “caught being kind” recognition program and established “problems of practice” discussions during staff meetings to address teacher concerns in real time. The building’s LED lighting project is approximately two-thirds complete, with completion expected by late January or early February, and the school now has seven functioning filtered water fountains.
Pembroke Middle School Principal Donna McGarrigle reported robust participation in student leadership, with 19 of 27 seventh-graders volunteering to serve on the school council. The school continues its Career and Academic Planning (CAP) program with monthly lessons on college and career options. Guidance staff now conduct goal-setting sessions in whole-group settings rather than individually, helping normalize the idea that all students have strengths and areas for growth. The school is emphasizing executive functioning skills through initiatives like backpack cleanups. Student leadership plans to organize a bag lunch program for Father Bill’s homeless shelter using profits from a recent school dance. The building has added a new weight room supporting the strengthening and conditioning elective.
Pembroke High School Principal Marc Talbot presented the school’s response to recommendations from last year’s New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) accreditation visit. The school must address two priority areas before its three-year progress report. The first involves implementing comprehensive approaches to active learning strategies, diversified assessment methods, opportunities for revision, structured collaboration time, differentiated instruction, and student agency. A group of five teachers serving as “early adopters” are collaborating during professional development time to review lesson plans through the lens of applied learning tenets, which align closely with the district’s Vision of the Graduate pillars. “They’re putting themselves out there. They’re taking risks. They’re taking their lesson plans and putting it out there for their peers to see. And then they’re accepting that critique, that feedback. And that’s how you get better,” Talbot said. The group will present findings to the full faculty in spring, with the goal of expanding participation next year.
The second NEASC priority addresses structured common planning time for teachers—a challenge Talbot noted has persisted throughout his 33-year career in education. “It’s a problem that seems to never get solved. But we have to really take a hard look at that,” he said. The issue is currently part of contract negotiations with the teachers’ association, though alternative solutions may be necessary. “There are other schools that do it. There are other models out there that have structured time and a process,” Talbot noted, indicating staff members are ready to serve on a committee that may visit other districts to observe their approaches.
The high school has made significant progress on communication initiatives. Daily announcements are now recorded and posted on the PowerSchool homepage, allowing students and parents to access them anytime. Talbot has revived the faculty council, which had dissolved after COVID, to address building-based operational issues separate from contractual matters. The council recently discussed online assignment deadlines, particularly weekend submissions. “Why does something have to be due at 8 o’clock on a Sunday night versus when they walk in the door on Monday morning?” Talbot questioned, acknowledging parent concerns while exploring whether benefits outweigh the perceptions created. The custodial crew has adopted a team cleaning approach, moving through the building together rather than working in isolated sections, resulting in more efficient cleaning and additional time for detailed maintenance tasks.
Technology initiatives across the district include device lifecycle management, infrastructure connectivity improvements, data security enhancements, and policy development around cell phones and artificial intelligence. Director of Technology Mike Tinker has already completed several goals, including providing charging stations for student devices in every classroom—a simple solution using existing equipment that has significantly reduced classroom interruptions. The high school will transition its Wi-Fi access from an on-site server to cloud-based management next month.
Committee member Susan Bollinger inquired whether additional financial support was needed for the ambitious goals outlined in the improvement plans. When asked about measuring success for the high school’s achievement goals, Talbot explained that the faculty presentation in spring and adoption rates would serve as benchmarks, with observations using a rubric combining the Vision of the Graduate with applied learning tenets. Student representative Joe offered perspective on communication improvements, noting that younger students can’t always be trusted to catch all morning announcements and that parent access is valuable. He also discussed assignment deadlines, particularly midnight deadlines, suggesting that checkpoint requirements might vary appropriately between different course levels.
Committee members praised the comprehensive improvement plans. Katrina Delaney commended Bryantville’s focus on consistent language use across staff: “It’s obvious, like, when you have a group of teachers and then it’s been a few years and nobody had that training, so it’s smart to be looking at that.” She also expressed enthusiasm for the high school’s faculty collaboration on applied learning: “I know, like you said, it can be vulnerable to put your lesson plans out there. But to be able to workshop that in a group and find a way to make improvements will be awesome for the whole staff eventually.”
The committee also received strategic planning updates. The district’s strategic planning committee, comprising 27 stakeholders, held its third of six meetings and is on track for a January release. The group has identified major themes from focus groups and surveys and begun developing “big rocks” for the plan. The next meeting on December 10th will finalize the vision and mission statements and begin developing core values and action steps. Superintendent Obey noted the challenges of working with such a large, diverse committee: “We spent almost an hour and a half like wordsmithing a sentence, and it is really great to have the input from different stakeholder groups, but not all of it finds itself in language that makes sense in day-to-day practice.” A working draft will be shared with administrators for refinement before broader distribution.
Why It Matters
The projected $823,679 budget increase represents the cost of maintaining current educational programs and services at next year’s prices, but does not include any enhancements or new initiatives. For Pembroke taxpayers, this figure will directly impact the local share of school funding through property taxes, though the exact amount will depend on state Chapter 70 aid announced in January and the outcome of ongoing teacher contract negotiations. The budget includes assumptions about collective bargaining agreements that remain unresolved, meaning the final number could change significantly. Parents and community members should monitor the budget development process through joint school committee and select board meetings in the coming months, as decisions made will affect class sizes, programs, and services available to students. The transparency demonstrated by releasing preliminary budget information in early December provides residents an extended opportunity to understand financial pressures and participate in public discussions before spring town meeting votes.
Meeting Minutes
Key Motions & Votes
Motion: Approval of school committee minutes of November 18, 2025. Outcome: Approved. Vote: 5-0 (Unanimous). (Timestamp: 6:41)
Motion: Approval of MSAA waiver for cheerleading to allow eighth-grade participation in high school winter cheerleading. Outcome: Approved. Vote: 5-0 (Unanimous). (Timestamp: 16:38)
Motion: Second reading approval of Policy ACB - Equal Access and Annual Evaluation of K-12 Programming. Outcome: Approved. Vote: 5-0 (Unanimous). (Timestamp: 8:42)
Motion: Second reading approval of Policy ACB-R - Equal Access and Annual Evaluation of K-12 Programming Procedures. Outcome: Approved. Vote: 5-0 (Unanimous). (Timestamp: 9:06)
Motion: Enter executive session pursuant to Chapter 30A, Section 21A.3 to discuss strategy related to collective bargaining. Outcome: Approved. Vote: 5-0 by roll call (Unanimous). (Timestamp: 13:52)
Public Comment
No public comment was offered during the designated public comment period at the beginning of the meeting.
What’s Next
The committee’s budget subcommittee will meet with the Select Board’s budget subcommittee in a joint session within the next week to discuss the fiscal year 2027 maintenance of effort budget. The contract negotiations subcommittee will meet on Monday, December 8th, with hopes of finalizing financial packages with the Pembroke Teachers Association and bringing a ratification proposal to the committee’s next December meeting. The strategic planning committee will hold its fourth of six meetings on Wednesday, December 10th, to finalize vision and mission statements and develop core values and action steps, with the full strategic plan targeted for release in January. The first look at Chapter 70 state education aid is expected the third Wednesday in January. Student representative Joe will provide a report on student perspectives and concerns at the January 16th meeting. Future school committee meetings are scheduled for January 5th, January 13th, and January 20th, 2026.
Excellent reporting on a complex budget process! The detail about "an assumption of an assumtions" in FY27 captures something crucial about municipal budgeting that often gets lost: preliminary numbers compound uncertainty rather than resolve it. The December release demonstrates real transparancy, giving residents months tothe understand drivers before town meeting rather than dropping figures in spring when options narrow considerably.