Whitman-Hanson School Committee Forms Audit Exploratory Subcommittee, Strengthens Financial Oversight Following Budget Crisis
HANSON - December 3 - The Whitman-Hanson Regional School Committee voted unanimously Wednesday night to establish an audit exploratory subcommittee, continuing the board’s response to the fiscal crisis that forced elimination of 30 staff positions in November. The three-member subcommittee will develop scope and cost estimates for independent audits.
The Full Story
The December 3 meeting opened with pointed public comments demanding transparency about the district’s $1.43 million deficit. Jennifer Roback questioned whether administrators had been placed on improvement plans similar to those used for underperforming teachers.
Former committee member Dawn Byers raised concerns about missing executive session minutes and the lack of individual employee payroll information. “If Mr. Hyde has done the work and the exercise that determined who was going to be cut or how much was going to be cut, you should have that paperwork in front of you,” Byers said, referencing Business Office Consultant Brian Hyde’s work on the FY26 deficit.
School Committee Chair Ryan Tressel, recently elected to lead the board, acknowledged the concerns and moved forward with oversight proposals. The committee’s most significant action was creating the audit exploratory subcommittee, with Christopher Marks, Rosemary Hill, and TJ Roffey volunteering to serve.
Hill, who brought the original audit motion, explained the subcommittee would identify specific areas requiring external review. “We’ve identified governance and internal control audits,” Hill said, referencing a request made at the prior meeting. She added the subcommittee would examine “procedural and regional agreement compliance audit—making sure that we’re charging the towns correctly and that we’re getting refunded what we need from the schools.”
The subcommittee will need to address audit funding, a concern raised by multiple members given the district’s precarious finances.
The committee also established a warrant subcommittee consisting of Beth Stafford, Rosemary Hill, and Stephanie Blackman to review payment warrants before approval. Hill indicated she had previously spent hours reviewing warrants and encountered issues that were sometimes treated as “an exhausted, bothersome thing to highlight.”
Staffing negotiations subcommittees consumed significant time as the committee worked to fill vacancies left by Kara Moser’s resignation. Moser, who represented Hanson, stepped down from the committee, creating openings on Unit B (administrators) and Unit C (administrative assistants) negotiation teams.
After extended discussion about whether a single committee member could represent the full board in negotiations, Christopher Marks volunteered for Unit B and Blackman agreed to join Unit C alongside Stafford.
The committee approved Blackman’s proposal to create a policy advisory group that would include community members, staff, and students. The advisory group would work alongside the policy subcommittee but would not have voting authority.
“Multiple people in town have offered their services to help us through this challenging time,” Marks said. “There’s not really an opportunity for, all right, come on up here and sit down with us.”
Budget Subcommittee Chair Tressel, along with members TJ Roffey and Rosemary Hill, reported on their November 12 meeting.
Roffey emphasized the ongoing budget concerns despite the November staff reductions. “The deficit that was identified was $1.4 million in change and the payroll cuts were $811,000,” Roffey said. “There are still serious budget concerns for the FY 26 year that do require attention.”
However, both Tressel and Roffey pushed back against language about “phase one” cuts that had created fear of additional layoffs. “The phase one language was very unfortunate because that implies there is a phase two already planned, and there is not,” Tressel said.
Marks criticized Hyde, the consultant from TMS, for using language about “closing a school in March” and “hoping to open the doors in 2027” during budget discussions, calling such phrases unhelpful.
Stafford reported on a recent Zoom meeting with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and Department of Revenue. Commissioner Jay Sullivan acknowledged the district’s challenges and indicated state officials would continue monitoring. Tressel noted he had been invited to a follow-up meeting December 9, as he has now succeeded Stafford as chair.
Three committee members—Stafford, Hill, and Blackman—reported on their attendance at the Massachusetts Association of School Committees joint conference. Hill highlighted learning about Pioneer Regional Valley schools, which overcame similar financial difficulties through increased transparency and special legislation that provided DESE oversight and improved the district’s bond rating.
Blackman emphasized the conference’s value, listing courses on mental health leadership, regional school finance, conflict management, policy development, special education finance, and open meeting law. “I want the community to know that information was brought back that is going to be useful,” Blackman said.
Hill also reported on sessions about collaborative programs for special education students. With space shortages at regional collaboratives, Hill suggested the district could generate revenue and better serve students by hosting programs in district buildings if enrollment continues declining.
“If we have declining enrollment, a way to address that with your own students, actually bringing them back to your school,” Hill said. Students could receive services in their hometown rather than being bused long distances.
Policy Subcommittee Chair Blackman reported that her subcommittee reviewed the fiscal responsibility section of the policy manual. “We identified a number of policies which are not being followed, have not been followed, need to be put back into to keep things from, the wheel from falling off the wagon,” Blackman said.
The committee will vote on a required competency determination policy December 17 to meet the state’s December 31 deadline, though members acknowledged the policy may need revision following the governor’s recent recommendations.
Tressel concluded by announcing that Hanson seeks candidates to fill Mosher’s vacant seat, with applications due December 11 and selection scheduled for December 16.
Why It Matters
The audit exploratory subcommittee represents the school committee’s most concrete step toward addressing systemic financial management failures that resulted in a $1.43 million deficit and elimination of 30 staff positions. Independent audits could identify specific weaknesses in internal controls, payroll systems, and regional agreement compliance—issues that allowed financial problems to accumulate undetected. For Whitman and Hanson taxpayers, these oversight measures aim to restore confidence in district finances and prevent future budget crises. The committee’s emphasis on transparency through comprehensive budget documents, warrant review, and community engagement responds directly to residents’ repeated demands for accountability in how their tax dollars are managed.
Meeting Minutes
Key Motions & Votes
Motion: Accept donation of ninth generation Apple iPad from the Valachovic family to the Preschool Academy. Outcome: Approved. Vote: Unanimous. (Timestamp: 0:11:16)
Motion: Accept donation of small tent for cross country track and field team for Hanson Middle School. Outcome: Approved. Vote: Unanimous. (Timestamp: 0:11:31)
Motion: Approve Whitman Middle School 8th grade class field trip to New York City and Philadelphia. Outcome: Approved. Vote: Unanimous. (Timestamp: 0:11:49)
Motion: Approve Whitman-Hanson Regional High School Global Travel Program field trip. Outcome: Approved. Vote: Unanimous. (Timestamp: 0:12:08)
Motion: Create audit exploratory subcommittee. Outcome: Approved. Vote: Unanimous. (Timestamp: 0:27:16)
Motion: Create policy advisory group with community members, staff, and students. Outcome: Approved. Vote: Majority (specific vote count not recorded). (Timestamp: 0:57:36)
Public Comment
Jennifer Roback questioned the need for two assistant superintendents in a district of Whitman-Hanson’s size and requested clarity on the special education director position. She asked whether administrators had been placed on improvement plans and called for all financial information to be shared in visual format. Roback also requested updates on whether the committee had accepted a community member’s offer to provide professional help with budget issues.
Dawn Byers raised concerns about executive session minutes that were requested but not declassified according to district policy, noting three meetings had passed without action. She questioned whether the committee had reconciliation reports showing line-by-line staff positions and salary changes from the reduction in force. Byers also asked for verification that former business director Stephen Marshall’s resignation was documented in writing, referencing past settlement agreements with business directors that were kept secret from the committee.
Joey Ford from Attleboro, founder of Parent Aid, was not permitted to speak as he is not a Whitman or Hanson resident, in accordance with the committee’s public comment policy.
What’s Next
Policy Subcommittee meeting December 4 at 4:30 p.m. in the communications room
Budget Subcommittee meeting December 10 at 5:00 p.m. in the communications room
Hanson Select Board and Hanson members of the School Committee to interview candidates for vacant school committee seat December 16
Building Committee meeting December 16 at 4:00 p.m. at the middle school (includes building tour for Committee members)
Next School Committee meeting December 17 at 6:30 p.m.
Vote scheduled on competency determination policy December 17
Chair Tressel to attend DESE/DOR oversight meeting December 9
Audit Exploratory Subcommittee to develop scope, cost estimates, and funding mechanisms for independent audits