by Qinglong Diep
LOWELL — The Lowell School Committee convened last night for its third public budget hearing on the upcoming fiscal year, which has drawn testimony from students, parents and employees across the school district.
Last night, the committee voted to trim nearly $353,000 from its technology budget, while deferring action on proposed cuts to student support specialists and clerk schedulers at Lowell High School.
Dozens of students, educators and parents pleaded with officials not to eliminate the positions they said were essential to student safety and academic success.
The committee approved a Finance and Operations budget of $6,952,867 after committee member Fred Bahou made a motion to reduce the computer hardware line item from $1 million to $700,000, citing unspent funds from the current fiscal year.
Mayor Erik Gitschier separately moved to eliminate two proposed part-time computer repair technician positions, saving an additional $52,416.
Mr. Bahou also made a motion to reduce the Computer Software Administration Line item from $939,400 to $700,000, which ended in a 3-3 vote, thus leaving the motion to fail.
The hearing drew more than a dozen public speakers opposed to the proposed cuts, many who have appeared at previous meetings.
Several committee members acknowledged the tension between fiscal constraints and the need to preserve staff. Committee member Danielle McFadden voted in favor of the teaching staff budget, saying school principals had put together their spending plans collaboratively with staff and parent representatives.
Superintendent Skinner suggested the committee continue through the remaining budget pages and allow funds accumulated in a suspense account currently estimated near $500,000, partially from the technology cuts approved to be reallocated to restore positions.
The committee also approved the Instructional Leadership budget at $3,792,273, restoring the Academic Chair of Fine Arts position at Lowell High School that had initially been proposed for elimination.
The teaching staff section of the budget, totaling $115,410,851, failed on a 2-4 vote, with several members citing concerns about proposed cuts to English Language Learner teachers and the need for more data to ensure the district remains in compliance with federal requirements.
Committee member Eileen DelRossi said reducing multilingual learner staffing raised both legal and civil rights concerns.
“We’re bare bones in our budget,” DelRossi said. “We’re not giving these kids what they truly need and deserve.”
The committee will also seek a ruling from the City Solicitor on whether it has the authority to restore Student Support Specialist and Clerk Scheduler positions at Lowell High School.
The School Committee will meet next Wednesday night to finish the budget deliberation and to approve the bottom line figure to send it over to the City Council.
