HANOVER – During a joint meeting of the South Shore School and Building committees on Thursday, Feb. 22 the Building panel voted 10-0, with one person – School Principal Sandra Baldner – absent, to design a new school for 900 students and to authorize the project team to submit a schematic design to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) by Feb. 29.
Only the Building Committee is authorized to vote on the preferred design and enrollment for the new school. The entire School Committee happens to be member of the Building Committee and held a brief business meeting at the conclusion of school building matters.
Whitman member Dan Salvucci, who had been hesitant to vote for the larger building, said the other committee members had convinced him as he cast his yes vote.
Jen Carlson of LeftField said, in response to questions that the cost per square foot is higher for lower enrollments because the size specialized spaces like shops, the kitchen and gymnasium do not shrink much, if at all, just because an enrollment might be lower. The same is true for shared spaces such as library, cafeteria and multi-purpose auditorium and the more generic classroom spaces.
“An approximately 100-student design enrollment drop resulted in a 3-percent increase in the cost per square foot,” she said of an 805-student [$920.66 per square foot] vs. a 900-student [$880.72 per square foot] school. The same type of increases were evident in schools with lower enrollment capacity, which the committees had removed from consideration.
Construction and soft costs did increase with the higher enrollment figures being considered, however. The estimated total cost of an 805-student school would be $274 million with a a likely MSBA share of 36.34 percent, or $100 million, and a 900-student school is $283 million with a likely 37.89 MSBA share, or $107 million, according to Carlson. Districts would be responsible for 63.66 percent, or $174 million, on an 805-student school and 62.11 percent, or $176 million, on a 900-student school.
“These numbers will change, they’re for comparison purposes only,” Carlson reminded the committees. “The MSBA participates more with higher enrollment, at least in this instance, where they’ll participate a little less with the lower enrollment in this case.”
Whitman Finance Committee member Rosemary Connolly told the committees that, the MSBA share for Whitman’s last building was close to 60 percent of eligible costs.
“Considering that we will be paying 25 percent of this [project’s] cost and we exceed allotted amounts by double the students, I would like you to question is there a tipping point where a town would pull out if they’re going to end up paying double the amount they would to build it outside the reimbursement” Connolly said. “You have to consider, when you’re talking about pushing these numbers so high, when will a town say, we’re going to pull out?” she said.
Superintendent/Director Dr. Thomas J. Hickey said that Connolly had raised similar questions a December public forum on the project in Whitman.
“We are in the process of communicating, and have actually initiated, outreach to MSBA to address the first issue, that Rosemary raised,” he said.
Based on the way the enabling legislation for MSBA reads, he is asking how a reimbursement rate is calculated with a regional school district and when an independent agriculture and/or technical school is under consideration.
“The MSBA, in my opinion, should look at which ZIP Codes are sending kids to the school, and that merely taking every ZIP Code that is a part of our regional district and treating them as if they sent equal numbers of kids, is what could potentially contribute to a lower reimbursement rate,” Hickey said. “That is a conversation that is still on the radar. A few percentage-point adjustments could make a big difference for everybody, there’s no question about it.”
Hickey said vocational schools are reimbursed at the same rate as regular high schools and the cost per square-foot caps are the same, regardless of the specialized spaces vocational schools use for shop instruction.
“We’ve been advocating, as a community, for a long time collectively to ask that the MSBA create a separate lane [for vocational schools],” he said. “Whatever they can do at the state level, provides relief at the local level.”
At the very least, Hickey would like them to consider the current funding formula.
If they interpret the enabling legislation to allow them to consider where students come from and the relative wealth of those communities at the time they secure a project funding agreement with SST, that could also change reimbursement numbers, which could change the bottom-line numbers, he said.
“It is not lost on me that the pace at which we can admit students cannot go any faster than the ability of our towns to pay for an operating budget,” Hickey said. Project timing and district expansion are other considerations, but the best revenue source is the MSBA reimbursement, he stressed.
Architect Carl Franchesci of DRA also emphasized that the estimated MSBA shares being discussed are not the district’s reimbursement rate.
“Your reimbursement rate is more like 50-something percent,” he said. “It’s going to be the effective rate, after you eliminate those ineligible costs.”
Both Carlson and Hickey said it was just over 55 percent for the feasibility phase.
“That ties into what I said about so many costs for vocational schools are not reimbursable, so it drags the number down,” Hickey said. “Even if we did clock in at the mid-50s for construction-eligible reimbursement, the conversation with MSBA still has to happen.”
Salvucci, a member of both the School and Building committees, said any out-of-district students the school would be able to accept would be charged at a rate set by the state and those funds could be used to offset construction costs a bit.
At the moment, there are about 80 students on a waiting list to attend SST.
“There’s a construction conversation, then there’s capacity, and finding that sweet spot between the ability to enroll and have the staff on an operating level, be able to serve kids,” Hickey said. “It seems as though, unlike a lot of schools that might have waiting lists, but every other community around them is already aligned with another school, there’s the potential for expansion, there’s the potential to open to non-resident enrollment, if necessary.”
Some of those concerns could be reconciled by a gradual pay as-you-go-model and/or an amendment to the regional agreement by the fall, he said. But, right now, the number of unused seats is being offset by an increase in applications from member towns like Whitman.
There is also interest from Pembroke in joining the district, as Marshfield is already doing.
“If Pembroke were entering the district this fall, they’d be at about 11 percent of the district, which is about an average number,” Hickey said. “Norwell’s number was very high in the 1970s.”
Norwell representative Dustin Reardon said his town was 40 percent of the enrollment at that time. Scituate meanwhile, with 54 students attending next year will be the highest enrollment for that town since 1982.
“There’s no telling when it’s a trend and when it’s a blip, but in the long term, we have considerable construction costs, a long-term investment and the opportunity to expand the region to help pay these costs – and those operating costs,” Hickey said. “When talking to the residents of our district, we have to start with the facts … Pembroke has nothing to do with MSBA, quite honestly.”
Salvucci said it seems that vocational school enrollment is increasing generally.
“I think the trend is they are increasing, obviously, and waiting lists certainly vary,” Hickey said. “Regionalized vocational education is not cheap, but it’s the least-worst option, in terms of being able to give kids from small towns access to 12 or 14 vocational programs.”

WHITMAN – The Select Board has begun the discussion surrounding a possible override question to put before voters this May.
“As you know, we have put a 5 percent increase as a place-holder in the fiscal 2025 budget for the W-H Regional School District assessment,” said Town Administrator Mary Beth Carter. “If the district certifies an amount greater than the 5 percent we have planned for, the board may want to consider a Proposition 2 ½ override for any amount requested in excess of the 5 percent.”
She said such a move would require an additional warrant article for the annual Town Meeting and a ballot question for the May 18 annual Town Election. The Board will again discuss the budget issue on March12. The School Committee has until March 16 to certify its budget.
“I suggest that we consider this course of action and plan to include the related agenda items on an upcoming Board of Selectmen’s agenda in March to further discuss this issue,” she said.
Board member Shawn Kain, who is on the budget subcommittee, also spoke to the potential need for an override.
“The School Committee is in a tough spot,” he said, “There’s a good group of people who are trying to do best by kids, and at the same time wrestle with this budget, and they definitely are in a dilemma.”
He noted enrollment dropped again, the district is still in the hold-harmless situation, they spread themselves a bit thin with the use of one-time money as the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief fund (ESSER) money is going away and the state is pulling back on some funding. The ESSER funds were used to fund a number of positions to help students recover educational ground after remote learning during COVID.
Hold-harmless is a process by which the state calculates how much state funding was provided in a previous year, plus a small per-pupil addition to arrive at how much they believe a district will need and provide the larger dollar amount. A district is “held harmless” by not reducing your aid. If the state believes that need is declining, usually because of declining enrollment, all the budget growth is borne by the towns.
“They’re certainly in a difficult situation and, honestly, the solution isn’t clear,” Kain said. “Hopefully, we can go through the budget and find some ways to save money. I’m sure that would be greatly appreciated by the community. But with the signs of a deficit for a level-service budget, it’s understandable that they would consider an override and I think they should have the opportunity to do so.”
Kain added that he, personally, would like to see an enrollment projection to see exactly what the school district is facing.
“There is a difference between a stable enrollment override and an override that takes place while enrollment continues to drop,” he said. “If enrollment continues to drop – and I don’t know that that’s the case – but were it to continue to drop, then it’s no guarantee, but we would likely, or more likely, still be in the hold-harmless situation, which would complicate things moving forward.”
He said on the town side, although it would place a significant strain on departments, it may be advantageous to “limp through the next couple years” because of the Plymouth County retirement liability continuing strain that side of the budget. Those increases, to makeup a deficit in that fund are forecast to continue for the next three or four years.
“After that time, we know there’s going to be a significant drop-off,” he said. “Now that we know that and we can kind of project out what that’s going to do, for the town side, it may be advantageous, on Mary Beth’s recommendation, that we stay kind of disciplined, as opposed to combining with the schools for an override. But that’s something to talk about and consider.”
For now, he said, the recommendation is to discuss a school override.
Chair Dr. Carl Kowalski said the only wrinkle he sees is that it would be a Select Board proposal to put it before the voters.
Kain asked that the board consider whether they wanted to discuss the issue with department heads to determine whether the town wanted to “piggy back” an override in addition to the schools or follow Carter’s recommendation, which he favors.
“I think I agree with Mary Beth, that’s the way to go,” Kowalski said. “The difference between the 5 percent and what the schools initially said they needed for a level-service budget is a great difference. It seems to me that it needs the consideration of an override in order to have it work.”
Kowalski said the Select Board should propose putting that before the voters as a ballot question.
Select Board member Justin Evans expressed concern that, at the board’s last meeting, they discussed that town departments might consider it.
“Town departments are also not living within the Madden recommendations,” he said. “Over the last couple of years, as well as this year, their projected increases are greater than what we can afford for any given department.”
Unless there have been voluntary efforts to make cuts, that’s probably still the case, he said it would be difficult to say it’s an override driven by the need of the schools.
“For this to work, Hanson would also need to pass an override just for the schools, otherwise we’re passing an override that can’t be spent, I don’t think,” he said.
Kain said that is why discussing it early and making it public sets the tone.
“If we do this, we’re sending a clear message as to what our intentions are,” he said.
Carter said the Plymouth County retirement liability is set to end in 2029 if the retirement board does not vote to extend it.
“That’s light at the end of the tunnel, but it is a few years down the road,” she said.
She met with department heads on Thursday, Feb. 15 and asked for their suggestions for cuts and, if she didn’t hear back from them she would go through it as best she could to reduce it.
By the next scheduled Select Board meeting on March 12, she said the School Committee would be meeting to certify their budget.
Finance Board members Kathleen Ottina and Rosemary Connolly, each attending the Select Board meeting to address other matters, said they appreciate to difficulty, but had questions.
“As a FinCom member, I know the gap,” she said. “I question the legality of forcing an override on the schools. … Towns can’t cut the school budget. They can either accept it or not accept it. … I question the legality of what the town is suggesting, that the school budget can be segregated into what the town is capable of funding within the 5 percent and then the rest would be put on an override.”
Kowalski and Carter said it was considered legal in 2016 when the same course of action was taken. Carter stressed that town counsel would be asked to examine it this year, as well. Ottina countered that the initiative came from the schools in 2016.
“To be clear, this would be with the cooperation of the schools,” Kain said. “If the schools were not in agreement with this structure, then we would have to pivot.”
“Schools have autonomy over their budget,” Connolly said. “There are so many laws and requirement that they have to meet. It’s one of the reasons you’re supposed to put your school budget first.”
She asked what happens if the schools put forward a budget that meets students needs, but still does not meet what the Select Board wants.
“Do you have a secondary budget set, because it’s going to come out of all of your other budgets?” she asked. “I just feel like this might be a little bit dangerous and almost theatrical and not really proper budgeting.”
Evans agreed the schools have autonomy, but they also have to present their budget to be printed in the warrant, but the Select Board also has to present a balanced budget to Town Meeting.
“That’s a huge point that Mr. Evans just made,” said resident John Galvin, who has served on the Finance Committee in the past. He noted that to keep to the 5 percent the towns indicated they could afford in a school budget, $1.9 million in cuts would be necessary to the school budget.
If you look at what’s causing this deficit, it’s clearly a revenue issue with the schools,” Galvin said. “It’s not just the $800,000 worth of ESSER, or the $500,000 worth of [excess and deficiency] that could be used. They’re also being told from the state … and federal other grants to be short almost another $400,000.”
State Cherry Sheet numbers will be down almost $125,000, he noted.
“If you add those all up, it’s basically the $1.9 million deficit that the schools are saying they would have if the towns are funding at 5 percent assessment,” he said. “All the grants they’re forecasting in their revenue are gone.”
He asked how the town could even think about handling that without an override. The town’s budget increases, by comparison, were designed to help increase town services.
“They’re going to lose jobs,” Galvin said of the schools. “I can’t imagine why the schools wouldn’t want to work with us on this. It’s really the only way the schools have a chance.”
Connolly asked which school – between W-H and the four tech schools students attend.
Kowalski said the W-H district was being discussed.
Kain said increases from other regional schools, such as South Shore Tech and Norfolk Agricultural, are due to enrollment increases where the enrollment at W-H is decreasing.
Resident Robert Kimball of Auburnville Way, urged the Select Board to consider the elder population in town, who are already financially stressed because of ballot initiatives for a new DPW building and a new Whitman Middle School.
“It’s nice to have a level-service budget, but let’s make some cuts someplace,” he said. “Let them try to cut their budget. They’ve got decreased enrollment.”