School Committee Approves $52.4 Million FY26 Budget
The Pentucket Regional School District and Superintendent Justin Bartholomew announce that the district will move toward offering its first-ever full-day Monday-Friday pre-kindergarten option for families entering the district with children as young as 3 years old for the 2025-2026 school year.
The move comes as the Pentucket Regional School Committee approved on Tuesday a $52,431,635.37 budget for FY26, which was made in consultation with the three member towns and is likely to avoid any Proposition 2-1/2 override requests in Groveland, Merrimac and West Newbury, but leaves the district needing to close a $1.125 million budget deficit in order to maintain level services.
Knowing that the District was likely facing a deficit, Superintendent Bartholomew and the School Committee understood early in the budget making process that fees would need to be raised in lieu of going to the taxpayers for a tax override. Pre-K tuition has not been raised since the mid-2000s, but rather than just raising prices on the existing half-day offerings, Pentucket is adding additional seats and adding the full-day option, which has never been an option for families in Groveland, Merrimac and West Newbury.
“Nobody can claim to be a problem solver simply by raising prices, and today’s economic climate requires creative solutions that benefit our families and strengthen the district,” Superintendent Bartholomew said. “We are proud to be able to offer full-day Pre-K, at a rate that is less than the average for-profit daycare or private schools, but that will also bring money into the district that would likely be spent elsewhere on private preschool or daycare tuition.”
Pentucket circulated a survey to families recently. The results were clear and obvious, with nearly 70 percent of parents who are in Pre-K, about to be in Pre-K, or just out of Pre-K, saying they would prefer the full-day option.
Currently, Pentucket only offers half-day Pre-K for $275/month (four-day), $245/month (three-day) and $205/month (two-day). At these rates, the district loses money on Pre-K, which the district is not required to provide.
The Pentucket Regional School Committee, at its March 4 meeting, approved rates of $550, $490 and $410 respectively for the half-day programs and set tuition for full-day/five-day Pre-K at $1,000 per month.
Massachusetts has among the highest childcare and day care rates in the nation. According to CBS News and Care.com, Massachusetts is the second most expensive state for daycare, coming in at $1,488 per month on average, behind only Alaska ($1,500) and Washington, D.C. ($1,676).
While Pentucket does not raise or assign tuition prices lightly, the new rates will allow Pre-K to become self-funded, which will significantly reduce the district’s budget deficit and help avoid program cuts and possible teacher layoffs.
The district projects $360,000 in revenue from Pre-K, which would cut the deficit by a third. There is the possibility for more revenue if the district offers before and after school Pre-K/care programs as well. Once again, tuition would be carefully considered, balancing the needs and ability of families to pay with the necessity to avoid going into the red.
With a $52.4 million budget approved by the School Committee, Pentucket will pare down the $1.125 million budget deficit in a number of ways including:
- Pre-K tuition and full-day Pre-K
- $250,000 from pending vendor contracts and Summer Programs and Facilities Rentals accounts
- A $50 per sport increase in athletic fees
- A $25 per month increase in all Before & After School Programs
- A $25 per hour increase in Pentucket Regional School District facility rental fees
Additionally, the School Committee voted to authorize the Superintendent to accept as many as 80 School Choice students into grades 9-12, as the current enrollment of Pentucket Regional High School leaves surplus room to accommodate additional students from around the region. This will be re-evaluated annually, as new housing stock comes online in the three towns and is not viewed as a permanent financial solution.
The budget also would avoid any Proposition 2-1/2 property tax overrides in the three Pentucket communities
Additional details are expected to be released in the coming weeks.
